


The Lost Treasure of the Knights Templar

by SentimentalBoy18



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV), Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: AU, Action, Action/Adventure, Brotherly Love, Knights Templar, No Beta, Post-Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, Reginald Hargreeves' A+ Parenting, Treasure Hunting, Umbrella Academy AU, We Die Like Men, and by parenting i mean he sold some kids and manipulated the rest, dark au, its 2:30 am and i am having too much fun with the tags, no placement in UA canon, protective brothers everywhere, the kids aren't heroes, treasure, very tired men with the possibility of flubbed words
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:53:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 26,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23995579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SentimentalBoy18/pseuds/SentimentalBoy18
Summary: Nathan Drake had finally found the perfect balance between order and chaos. Unfortunately, balance can never last. Nathan and Elena are dragged into a world far darker than the treasure filled one they left. Reginald Hargreeves, an incredibly dark man with unimaginable riches, pays a visit to the Drake-Fisher household after they stumble upon a seemingly unimportant temple in the Israeli desert. With no choice but to comply with his demands, Nathan and Elena must call upon every friend they have to run this job, fighting for their lives. Little do they know, working for Reginald Hargreeves means sinking down to his level. And what's worse? Something is seriously wrong with that man's kids.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Original Character(s), Klaus Hargreeves & Original Character(s), Nathan Drake & Samuel Drake, Nathan Drake & Victor Sullivan, Nathan Drake/Elena Fisher
Comments: 23
Kudos: 14





	1. Genetic Predisposition

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! So, while this isn't my first fanfiction I've ever posted, it's the only one I've ever posted on AO3, so please bear with me. And feel free to let me know if you have any advice! I'll add tags and warnings as this story plays out, but I currently have a very small plan and more than a few tricks up my sleeve when it comes to this story, so I don't wanna be spoiling everything. I would really love to hear your feedback, so please don't hesitate to leave a review! And, for context's sake, I do have an OC Hargreeves in here. He's called Zero or Nico and he's a test tube baby Hargreeves created using Klaus' DNA and genetic meddling. If OCs being added aren't your thing, I get it, but I'm just letting y'all know that I attempt to make OCs as unobtrusive as possible. More backstory will be brought along later in the story, I just didn't want to spring a surprise child on everyone. Alright, I'll shut up now and let you guys read. Thanks again.

###  _“Let evil swiftly befall those who have wrongly condemned us - God will avenge us.”  
-Jacques de Molai, the 23rd and Final Grand Master of the Knights Templar_

#### Chapter One: Genetic Predisposition

While many people choose a life of hunting abandoned treasures nestled within lost cities, there are some individuals for whom the thrill of the chase has burrowed itself into their genetic makeup. When an individual like this is born, their existence divides into a forked path, each and every choice bringing them to one of two ends. Either these individuals die an early (and oftentimes, painful) death at the hands of an obsession they could no longer control. Or… they live long enough to find themselves craving another hunt, the adrenaline rush forever throwing them back into the fray.

Nathan Drake, as it turns out, is one of the latter. His questionable lineage tracing back to Sir Francis Drake aside, his late mother’s dedication to the study of historical artifacts trickled down to both him and his older brother, Samuel Drake. While Nathan had technically retired from the treasure hunting life after seeking out the massive wealth of Henry Avery’s pirate treasure with his elder brother (a fitting family reunion for siblings like these two), he would have been a fool to think that his taste for adventure would dissipate.

However, he was also a fool to think that his wife, Elena Fisher, would be willing to give that life up either. After mysteriously finding Spanish doubloons from Libertalia in her jacket pocket (after all, Sam Drake liked to claim he was the mysterious type), they used their immeasurable wealth to purchase Jamison Salvage, Nathan’s place of work, as well as enough camera equipment to reboot Elena’s old passion project, the television show that brought her and Nathan together in the first place. While their adventures were now far more legal and involved no guns, they still got to immerse themselves in history. This new life they created from themselves created a balance between chaos and order that they both adored. Life was, more or less, perfect.

That is, until one expedition to the ruins of a temple led them right back into the clutches of a dangerous foe.  
It was a completely ordinary day, the sun high in the early afternoon sky as Nate and Elena disembarked from their flight and put boots on the ground in Jerusalem. They quickly gathered their belongings from the small prop plane, being sure to make everything secure. Their beloved friend Sully’s parting words rang in their ears as they did, leading to more than a few double checks.

“If you ruin another one of my planes with your stupid plans, you’re paying for a new one.” he threatened past the cigar between his teeth.

After all the preparations were made, the couple stepped from the plane and headed to the nearby car rental service, where they picked up their reserved vehicle, a sturdy 4x4 that could handle the rough terrain they were about to tackle. As they set out into the desert, Nathan couldn’t help but remember his time spent wandering a similar terrain in search of his captured mentor, Victor Sullivan. The memory prompted him to grab one of their canteens and take a swig of water to wash down the phantom sand in the back of his throat.

“So, remind me why we are heading out into the middle of nowhere?” Nathan asked over the sound of the engine, taking his eyes off the road for a second to glance at Elena. She rolled her eyes, painfully aware of her husband’s short attention span.

“Well, from what I understand, there’s a large temple in some city ruins this way. Sources tell me it looks like it's from the 14th century. I figure our viewers would appreciate a little change in pace from our typical jungle voyages.” she explains simply, fiddling with her camera.

“Ah… Well, I hope it has something worth seeing. My last few dives have been shit.”

“Either way, still more fun than seeing a bunch of scrap metal covered in lake muck.” she pointed out. Nate had to give her that one.

After a ninety minute drive towards the horizon, they soon approached a small encampment of crumbling stone buildings. Elena’s contact had been right, this did appear to be from the 14th century, from what Nathan could imagine the rubble used to look like. The one building that seemed to be most intact happened to be the temple, standing prominently in the middle of the small town.

“Well, at least it’s clear where we’re going.” Nate commented, starting forward into the town. Something gnawed quietly at his stomach, an inexplicable sense of dread. He pushed the feeling down, explaining it away as simple paranoia. This place was a ghost town, the only danger was the possibility of the roof collapsing in.

“Old abandoned places like this always give me the creeps.” Elena comments, already filming the old crumbling walls and torn up paths.

“Tell me about it. It makes you wonder where everybody went.” Nate agreed, hopping through a window and into one of the houses. After a moment of silence, Elena hears Nate exclaim, “Wow! This wardrobe is untouched! Elena, come here!”

Elena grinned as she headed inside. Nothing got Nathan more giddy than relics of the past left for him to discover. She came in and aimed the camera at the ornate wooden piece of furniture, sneaking the future viewers a peek at the dusty, moth eaten robes. Clearly, at one time, they were fancy clothes, their rich colors dulled by age. Looking around, Elena saw that the rest of this room was picked clean, no obvious signs of wealth beyond the previous inhabitant’s garments. Most likely done by explorers much like them.

“Hey! Look at me!” Elena turns to see Nathan wearing one of the cloaks, the deep red fabric billowing over his well worn jeans and shirt. Elena giggled in spite of herself, but made a grossed out face.

“Those have been there for centuries! Take them off!”

“Buzzkill.” Nate grumbled good naturedly, poking his tongue out at her as he replaced the item.

She rolled her eyes and headed out of the house, peeking into the one across the little stone street. This building didn’t appear to have anything fancy, just some pebbles strewn across the floor and a broken clay pitcher.

“Boring!” Nate sang teasingly in her ear, peeking over her shoulder into the room for a moment before dancing off down the street. “Let’s go look at this temple!”

Elena rolled her eyes yet again and followed after him, taking video down each street they passed. She looked for any sort of sign as to the kind of people that lived in this little town in the middle of nowhere, but the stone walls kept their secrets. She looked past her camera to see she had fallen behind. Her husband was already standing at the front door of the temple.

“It’s pretty sturdy, given the state of the rest of the place!” he reported back to her.

“Good! I prefer keeping my skull un-caved in.” she quipped back, drawing a laugh from her husband.

“My favorite part is the lack of a door. The doors always end up locked.” he mumbles, pointing to the open entryway bordered by dirty red and white tapestries.

The two ascended the small steps and entered the temple’s main hall, looking around with a grin. While the stone may have been an earthy tan color, the rest of it was exquisite. The tall domed roof reached far higher than first thought, tall ornate pillars holding a second floor balcony above their heads. At the top, red and gold tiles outline a portrait of the Passion of Jesus on the ceiling. On the floors, ragged red carpets adorning the hard stone. It was clear that time had worn on this place, but in comparison to the rest of the town, this temple was in mint condition.

“Wow…” Elena breathed. “I didn’t think it would be this put together…”

“Did you try to bring me into a rockslide?” Nathan replied jokingly, already wandering off towards the middle of the chamber, where a strangely plain stone altar stood.  
“Wait, look at these!” Elena prompted, pointing out the murals sprawling over the walls between the pillars, each lined with beautiful carving and depicting a saintly figure outlined in light.

“Wow… These were definitely painted when this place was built…. Or someone is really good with a can of spray paint.” Nate said, voice seamlessly switching between awe and sarcasm.

The two wandered off to separate ends of the room, both entirely wrapped up in their exploration. As Elena approached one of the pillars, she noticed that they seemed to have golden veins running throughout the stonework. “Who made this place…?” she whispered, talking to herself and the camera. When she signed on to explore a temple in the middle of nowhere outside of Jerusalem, this is not what she was expecting.

“Hey, Elena, c’mere.” Nathan mumbled, taking on that tone he gets when he’s found something he’ll have to explain. Elena hustled over to his position in front of the pillar closest to the altar.

“Find something good?”

“Something weird. Look.” Nathan pointed to a slight, cross shaped indentation in the smooth pillar, blending in easily to the rest of the stone.

“A cross…? Well, we are in a temple.” Elena shrugged, putting the little carving in shot.

“Not just any cross. That’s a Templar cross.” Nathan explained, blowing away some of the dust clinging to the stone surface.

“Templar? Like, Knights Templar?” She looked even closer and saw that each cross flared out at the ends. “Okay… So what does that mean?” she glanced around the building with a new perspective.

“Yeah, exactly. But they have a temple in Jerusalem. Why would they be out here in the middle of nowhere?” Nathan wondered aloud. Then, something seemed to click in his head, his eyes lighting up like he thought of something important.

“What’s up?” Elena questioned, knowing the look incredibly well. That’s the look he had previously worn before he almost gets himself killed.

“What if…?” Nathan trailed off, turning on his heel and heading towards the pillar opposite the one with the cross.

“Use your words, Nathan.” She chastised, as if he were a little boy.

“Here! Another cross!” he exclaimed. “Go to the first one, I think they’re buttons!”

“Buttons?”

“Yes, buttons! Honey, the cross, please!” he cries.

Elena rolled her eyes once more with a good natured sigh and moved over to the first pillar.

“3, 2, 1..” As she finished the countdown, they pressed the buttons. For a moment, there was only silence. But then, the sound of stone grinding against stone filled the room as the altar moved back to reveal a staircase with a well maintained red tread rug, protected from the stains of time by the large stone slab.

The two explorers looked at one another, stunned at their find. A silent conversation passed between the two. What was this place? Does this place hold significance? Should we really be fucking with secret passages?

“After you.” Elena said cheekily, gesturing dramatically for Nate to enter.

“Why thank you!” he exclaimed, heading down the steps into the darkened tunnel. Both unclipped their flashlights from their belts, shedding light in the tunnel. It is plain, unadorned. This place was clearly used for some purpose, made for utility. After walking for a few moments, they finally reached the end of the tunnel, where it opened up into a large chamber with carvings on the walls. Most prominently, in the middle of the wall across from the entrance, was a multitude of Roman Numerals. II III, II VII.

“What the…?” Elena murmured, taking a step into the chamber. Nate followed close behind.

“They’re numbers… For what?” he asked.

However, the time for discussion was cut short by a loud cracking. The two looked at each other in confusion, stepping back as the right wall of the cavern exploded in a flurry of fire and stone.


	2. Children Among Men

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I got too excited and am rapid fire posting the first two chapters. Enjoy (hopefully)?

#### Chapter 2: Children Among Men

Nathan instinctively threw himself towards Elena to protect her from the blast, knocking them both away from the carnage. Both let out a shout of surprise, scrambling back into the corridor and hiding behind the wall. An eerie quiet settled over the chamber as the thunderous echo faded away. A moment later, the sound of heavy books beating against rock filled the air.

Nate held a finger to his lips, signalling for them to stay quiet. It was times like this that Nathan wished that Elena had let him keep at least one gun around for safety’s sake (after all, there are more types of thieves than the ones after treasures). He peeked out ever so slowly, the scene in front of him making him close his eyes in frustration.

A dozen armed soldiers stomped into the room, looking for any sign of intruders. The lack of gunfire meant they most likely didn’t know that Nathan and Elena were hiding mere feet away, which still gave them time to come up with a plan.

He dropped back down behind the wall. His glances were going to have to be quick, as they couldn’t afford to be spotted and there were too many eyes scanning the room. Elena gave him a questioning look, desperate to know what was going on in the room.

“Twelve goons, very armed.” he mouthed silently to her. She pointed out both herself and him, wordlessly asking if they were aware of their presence. He shook his head in reply.

Elena held up a finger, gesturing to the room before she also took a look into the cavern. Her face twisted in a mixture of shock and confusion as she dropped back.

“There’s kids in there.” she says in an incredibly hushed whisper.

“How many?”

Elena held up three fingers. Nathan mirrored her initial reaction, taking a peek for himself. The scene in front of him did absolutely nothing to answer any of his questions. If anything, it just gave him more.

Last to emerge from the hole in the wall were three young boys, followed by one final guard, this one far taller than the rest. The brute shoved one of the kids, a tall, lanky thing with messy hair, into the room, chuckling as he hits a chunk of rock with a huff. Nathan winced sympathetically as he watched, quickly noting the thick cuffs around the boy’s wrists. The guy looked like he was all skin and bones, the dark green cargo pants torn enough to show his knobby, scraped up knees. As he looked off to his side with an unfazed grin, Nathan could see clear black circles around his eyes, making his high cheekbones far more prevalent. If Nathan hadn’t seen this kid let out a sound of pain just a moment earlier, he would have assumed the figure was a ghost.

The smallest kid, a boy that bore a striking resemblance to the first, let out a pained grunt the moment the ghostly one hit the rock. He then took a determined step forward, reaching out with his own cuffed arms to help the other up. However, the shrimpy kid didn’t make it very far, as the large goon grabbed him by the throat and squeezed, just enough to cut off his windpipe. He lifted the boy ever so slightly so the toes of his steel-toed boots hardly touched the floor. A flash of fear reached the child’s eyes, his steel-bound hands clamoring in an attempt to release the stranglehold.

Nathan was about to take a step out of cover, do anything he possibly could to save the kid, when a stern voice rang out.

“Fucking drop him.” the final boy hissed authoritatively. This kid, while young, looked far older than the other two. His tanned skin and dark, shrewd eyes held the look of a man with experience. And, as tangible proof, he harbored a crescent shaped scar above his left eyebrow. It was clear that, regardless of age, he had already seen too much cruelty in the world. He raised his left arm, his hands free of steel cuffs, holding a knife in his hand. It was clearly a threat, a promise that the man would find the blade embedded in his skull if he didn’t spare the stringy boy in his grasp.

The big man moved his gaze to the armed man, cracking a slight smirk before dropping his prey to the floor with a thud. As the youngest collapsed to the floor, both him and his older look alike relaxed, though the youngest coughed and rubbed his own throat.

“Then control your mongrels, Two.” the big man growled, stepping past the knife-wielding man, who clenched his jaw tightly to control his flaring temper.

Elena gave him a frightened look and a quick shake of her head, reminding Nathan that he was about to take on all those armed assholes without a weapon. He cursed himself as he tucked himself back into cover, almost amazed by his newfound tier of idiocy. The youngest’s quiet coughing gave Elena pause and she looked out to the scene ahead. Nathan also spared a glance, watching as the uncuffed one helped both of the other kids up.

“Quit acting stupid, you’ll get yourselves killed.” he growled to them both, but there was no heat behind the words. It reminded Nathan a lot of the way Sam would scold him when they were younger, telling him to keep himself out of harm’s way after a particularly gruesome brawl in prison or a close call with the police. It was fraternal…. One way or another, these three were brothers.

Then, without another word, the supposed eldest, whom the thug had called Two, stepped away and headed over to the inscription on the wall of the cave. “Have we found the previous clues?” he asked, clearly uninterested.

“Boss is working on it. Jus’ take the numbers down an’ search the place so we can go.” the huge thug grunted, walking away and heading off to do a circuit of the room.

“We have to do something…” Elena whispered softly.

“What? We don't exactly have an army.” Nathan pointed out.

After a few moments, the group started to withdraw from the chamber, when a pair of footsteps stopped right next to a stone pillar just feet away from them. “Yo, Dax, I got something here!” he called out to the large guy, who started his way over.

“What’s that?” he asked, looking down at the same pile of rubble as the other man.

“A video camera.”

Nathan looked over and saw Elena wince, eyes closing as she realized her beloved equipment was going to be the item to give them away. The goons all turned towards the entrance to the cavern.

“C’mon out with your hands up.” ordered Dax, raising his own weapon.

Nathan let out a long breath as he stood, Elena following his lead. The couple stepped out into the open, hands raised in the air. Nathan expected to hear gunfire almost immediately, a clear signal that they had reached the end of the line. He tried to position himself in front of Elena, but they were properly surrounded. There was no way for him to protect her.

“That’s all?” Dax asked, sounding a little surprised.

“What? Did you expect a cast and crew?” Nathan griped.

“Well, it’d be nice to ‘ave a whole audience, yeah.”

Elena scoffed in reply. “Sorry to disappoint.”

“Oooh.. you’re a mouthy one, eh?” he asked, grinning deviously. He turned slightly, looking back at the kids sitting in the back. “Bring me Zero.” he commanded.

Elena and Nathan watched in nervous confusion as one soldier handed a magnetic strip to Two, who tapped it to the side of the cuffs of the smallest kid. The cuffs came off and were handed off to one of the nearby men. While Two’s face remained stoic, any shred of life that Zero’s face may have held before fell away, leaving an empty husk in its place.

“Everyone else, out.” Dax ordered. All of the armed guards stepped out of the room through the hole they had created, one of them roughly guiding the remaining kid away as he tried to watch what was happening with concern.

“As much as I enjoy the one on one time, big fella, we’ve got a schedule to keep, so we’ll be on our way.” Nate tried, knowing that his smart ass comment wouldn’t get him very far. He tried to take a step back, but the sound of a gun cocking slowed his movement.

“Nate…” Elena murmured. 

“Alright, Zero, you know what to do. Kill 'em.” Dax said, grinning widely.

Zero instead looked towards Two for confirmation and they shared a knowing look. Then, Zero took a deep breath in and squeezed his eyes shut. Dax seemed to relax, his eye glossing over as he stared at the wall ahead of him. Both Elena and Nathan took a tentative step back, looking around for the cause of such a stark change in the thug.

“You two need to leave.” Two ground out, taking a step towards the two, hist knife held loosely at his side. “Right now.”

“What the fuck?” Nathan asked in a hushed voice, frantically searching the blank stone walls for answers.

“You heard me. Get out of here before he comes back to. Don’t look back. Don’t say a goddamn thing to anyone about any of this.” he ordered, shooing them towards the door with a wave of his blade. He then turned around, looking back at Zero. “Nic, get Dipshit out to the rest.” Zero nodded and opened his eyes slightly, leading Dax towards their hole in the wall.

Nathan decided that he wasn’t going to question a good thing. He grabbed Elena by the arm gently and brought them both to a jog as they found their way back to the secret entrance in the temple. Behind them, they heard the sound of two gunshots in the chamber, a couple moments of quiet between them.

Neither Nate or Elena slowed down until they reached their rental vehicle parked just on the outskirts of town. They leaned against the hood, catching their breaths as they scanned the area for any sign of the temple’s other visitors. 

“What… In hell…. Just happened…?” Elena panted out, leaning her forehead against the back seat of the car. 

“I… I don’t know…. But the kids… Just saved our skin.”

“Yeah… agreed.” 

“Let’s… Let’s leave.” Nathan commented, hopping into the 4x4 and starting the engine.

“But… Shouldn’t we go try and help them?” Elena asked.

“How? We have no weapons, no idea where they came from or where they went, and absolutely no idea where they’re going next.” Nathan reasoned.

Elena paused and nodded solemnly, climbing into the car herself. “But… Fuck, they’re kids…”

“We’ll keep an eye on it, see what we can do with more information. But with no info, we’ll just get them killed.”

“Okay… Let’s go.” Elena sighed.

The two headed back towards Jerusalem in silence, both attempting to understand what happened and tamp down the guilt gnawing at them for letting it play out right in front of them.


	3. Know I'll Keep Moving

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: I heavily associate this story with the album Trench by twenty one pilots. The title comes from the song Cut My Lip. That's all. Thanks for the support, folks, it means a whole lot. :)

#### Chapter 3: Know I’ll Keep Moving

Diego watched the couple make off down the hall, waiting for them to fade into the distance. He pulled the gun that Dax the Dickhead made him carry for this job and fired off two shots, leaving a short pause between the first and the second.

“He better not come back to check.” he sighed softly to himself, putting the gun away once more. After casting one last glance around the room and checking to be sure he took note of the Roman Numerals, he headed back into the makeshift tunnel after his brothers.

Before he reached the rest of the group, he saw Nico leaning against the wall beside Dax, looking exhausted.

“Okay, Nico, you can let him be. The gunshots should have been enough to convince him.” Diego assured the kid, placing his hand on his shoulder.

Nico wasted absolutely no time in relaxing his hold on the horrid man’s aura, shaking his arms dramatically as if he was attempting to shrug off some invisible remnants of the man’s character. Dax quickly regained his air of boiling rage, eyes becoming far more focused than the previous moment.

“What…?” He asked defensively, eyes darting about the darkened crevice within the stone wall.

“Nico just killed the two intruders.” Diego prompted. “We should catch up with the rest of your men.”

Dax simply nodded and headed to the grate in the floor mere feet from the hole he had blown in the wall. Opening it, he made both of the children drop down first, splashing lightly into the murky water of the primitive sewer system beneath the city. The three trudged down the tunnel until they saw the lights of the rest of the squadron’s flashlights.

“Cuff them both.” Dax ordered the man standing next to Klaus. The man nodded and pulled two pairs of the cuffs off of his belt, securing them tightly around Nico’s wrists, then Diego’s. “Great work, Two.” the man drawled, grinning devilishly as Diego grit his teeth in frustration.

As Dax took up his spot at the front of the group, Diego fell into step with his two siblings. “So, Klaus, what got you on his bad side?” he asked, glancing over at his brother as he surveyed the rest of the soldiers flanking them.

“I was being polite, honest!” he defended, eliciting a chuckle from Nico. After receiving a piercing glare from Diego, however, he finally came clean. “Fine, fine… I told him ‘Ladies first’.”

“You’re a fucking idiot.” Diego deadpanned.

“Ah, but I’m a funny idiot.”

Diego sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. “We all need to lay low after what happened today. Or as low as they’ll let us. Two witnesses was enough to deal with.”

“So, Nico… Did you.. y’know...?” Klaus asked delicately, drawing one finger across his throat.

“I gave Dax the show he wanted.” Nico shrugged, giving Klaus a pointed look. He wasn’t about to admit to their deception surrounded by a bunch of goons with guns. Klaus nodded in understanding, filling in the rest of the story for himself. This{ wasn’t the first time that the boys had come up with a ruse to convince the others that they had murdered people who had gotten in their way. With a man like Dax in charge, it was fairly simple, as he always enjoyed utilizing Nico’s powers of aura manipulation. However, instead of forcing the captives to kill themselves, Nico would simply give Dax the rush he felt when watching such an atrocious act. His mind tended to fill in the details after that and they were able to let the whatever poor saps were in the area leave with their lives.

The three continued on in silence, following the old tunnel until it let out a few miles away, where their team’s vehicles sat, waiting. The three soldiers surrounding them manhandled them into the back of the biggest truck, sitting them down on the hard bench and attaching their shackles to chains bolted into the truck floor.

“Cozy.” Klaus murmured sarcastically, earning himself a smack in the back of the head from the nearest thug. Diego rolled his eyes, watching the three file out and close the door, leaving the brothers suspended in darkness.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

As soon as they reached the air strip where they had parked Sully’s plane, Nathan pulled out his cellphone to make a call.

“Who are you calling?” Elena asked curiously, ducking to enter the plane’s hatch.

“Sully. I wanna see if he knows what the hell all of that was about.”

“Which part? The hidden room, the armed guys, or the three children with them?” she asked, sounding exhausted just thinking about it.

“Yes.” Nate replied, tapping his screen and holding the phone up to his ear. After a few rings, he hears the muffled sound of Victor Sullivan’s voice mid-cigar on the other end.

“What’s up, kid? You two didn’t fuck up my plane, did you?”

“No, the plane is just fine. Not a scratch on her. But we found something weird.” Nate answered, glancing around to see if anyone besides his wife was in earshot. The coast was clear.

“What kind of weird?”

“El Dorado weird.” Nate defined. He could practically hear Sully sit forward in the silence following his statement.

“Nathan, you said you were done…” Sully warned, clearly ramping up for a massive lecture.

“And we are! We are. But we were looking into this temple for the show, like we said. But then we found some buttons and a secret chamber and then there were people with guns.”

“Are either of you hurt?”

“No, that’s the weirdest part! Their leader, this really ugly giant guy, wanted us killed, but then the kids with them saved our skins!” Nathan babbled.

“Wait, wait… kids?” Sully repeated, sounding thoroughly confused. From the background, Nathan heard another familiar voice exclaim, “What the fuck has he been drinking? Put ‘im on speaker."

“Is Sam there with you?” Nathan asked incredulously, also switching his phone to speaker as he entered the plane. Elena came in closer and sat with Nathan in the cargo bay, joining the conversation.

“That I am. Hello, Little Brother.” 

“What are you doing with Sully?”

“... Smoking a cigar…?” he answered, replying as though it were obvious.

“Oh, that sounds about right. I can smell you both through the phone.” Nate quipped, rolling his eyes dramatically.

“Okay, back to the point…” Elena prompted. “So, we walk into this temple in the middle of the desert. We started exploring and filming… and Nathan found this little cross on one of the pillars.”

“A cross in a place of worship?” Sully questioned, sounding skeptical already.

“Yeah, yeah, but it was a Templar Cross!” Nathan filled in.

“So he looks around and finds another one and we press them. They turned out to be buttons and the altar moved and revealed this staircase down…” Elena trailed off, allowing Nathan to pick up where she left off.

“We head down there and there’s this nice big chamber with designs all over and then Roman Numerals on the wall. We’re just snooping around when suddenly…”

“... the wall explodes! So we get into hiding, right? And a bunch of guys come out, armed to the teeth. At the end of the line are these three kids.”

“Two of them are handcuffed, but the third is walking around like he owns the joint. It seems like Big-’n’-Ugly was in charge of them, but he was totally beating on them. The uncuffed one was standing up for the other two though. And then, get this….”

“The big guy calls the kids by numbers.” Elena finished.

The silence on the line caused Nathan to double check that the call hadn’t dropped. Finally, Sam spoke up. “Did you two stumble upon… a triple child abduction case?” he asked, his tone conveying the true weight of the situation. Samuel always had a certain disdain for those who harmed children. He figured there was a good chance it stemmed back to his and Nathan’s childhoods, first the nastiness they experienced at the orphanage and then their time on the streets. But what did he know? He wasn’t a goddamn therapist.

“I don’t think so, man… They weren’t scared. They were treating it like business as usual, more or less. I think it was something more.” Nathan reasoned, putting his head in his hands. This idea alone was hard enough to process, but their story wasn’t finished yet. He sighed and continued the tale.

“So, they’re taking down the Roman Numerals and they find Elena’s crushed camera-”

“My expensive, crushed camera.” Elena interjected bitterly.

“Yes, hun, I’m aware. We’ll hold a service at noon tomorrow and a luncheon at two.” Nathan teased, placing a placating hand on her shoulder. “But they notice us and we have to give ourselves up. We step out and they uncuff the tiniest kid they’ve got. They called him Zero or somethin’... and expected him to kill us. But instead, Big-’n’-Ugly goes blank, like he’s drugged or something, and Two tells us to go. We don’t stick around because we have… absolutely no chance of beating everyone. Someone fired a gun twice, so I think they faked our deaths.” Nathan took a deep breath after finishing his rambling story.

“Fuck.” Sully commented with a huff. “What in hell did you two walk in on?”

“We were hoping you’d have some answers.” Elena admitted, brushing a couple stray wisps of hair from her eyes.

“I haven’t heard anything lately about the Knights Templar, though I know some have spent time searching for their supposedly lost treasure. Y’know, the Holy Grail and all that.”

“Yeah, yeah… I got a good look at the numbers, it’s possible they’re coordinates.” Nate commented. “And Two said something about other locations.”

“So, you two think that Big-’n’-Ugly is in charge of the operation?” Sam inquired.

“No, he mentioned a boss… I don’t know what is happening..” Nathan huffed. He always hated not knowing the answers. He thoroughly enjoyed being a know-it all.

“I’ll talk to some of my contacts and get back to you guys. Then we can figure out if it’s time to get the authorities involved.” Sully responded.

“Sounds good. Talk to you soon.” Elena agreed.

“Bye, Little Brother.” Sam said, the smooth smile evident in the lilt of his voice.

Nathan hung up his phone with a beep and headed up towards the cockpit, sighing gently. “Well, should we head home, then?” Nate asked Elena.

“Yeah…. Not much else we can do.” she climbed up into the passenger seat, leaning back into the headrest and closing her eyes.

Nathan snuck a look over at his beautiful wife, grinning lightly as he started the plane and began taxiing down the runway.


	4. The Bossman

#### Chapter 4: The Bossman

“Hey, brother, have pity.” Klaus whined lightly, giving Nico a pitiful look, watching the smoke from the younger boy’s cigarette dissipate in the air. It had been hours since his last secret smoke and, after the day that they had, he felt he deserved to unwind.

Nico simply groaned and rolled his eyes, pulling a partially crushed pack from the pocket of his military issue cargo pants. “Fine, but you fuckin’ owe me.” he grumbles, handing the stick over and holding out the glowing end of his own for Klaus to light his off of.

“You’re a saint, my boy. You must’ve had great parents.” Klaus crowed, snorting as he chuckled at his own joke.

“Might as well pass me one too.” Diego sighed, holding out his hand. 

“Well, it’s official. It’s the end of days. Kiss your ass goodbye, Klaus.” Nico deadpanned, tossing another cigarette to Diego. Despite the jokes, Diego’s brothers knew something must have been eating at him. Diego was the kind of person who wanted to be in peak physical condition, just in case a situation got particularly hairy. Because of that, he rarely smoked.

“What’s on your mind, brother dearest?” Klaus asked softly in his usual smart-ass tone, holding out his own cigarette for Diego, who took a long drag accented by a deep cough after lighting his before replying.

“The two at the temple today.” he admitted, looking annoyed when his two siblings dropped their heads back in identical looks of exhaustion. “Hey, don’t give me that shit! Something was off with those two.”

“Yeah, how ‘bout the fact that they brought a camera to an old ass building in the middle of Buttfuck, Nowhere?” Nico suggested.

“Or the fact that they didn’t leave right after the explosion?” Klaus added.

“But, that’s exactly it! Why didn’t they run? Why were they even there? Normal folks wouldn’t just stick around.” Diego reasoned.

“They’re dumb?” the other two suggested in unison, eliciting a glare from their counterpart.

“You two suck.” he grumbled, settling back against the bars of their cell with the cigarette between his lips. He absentmindedly rattled the power-dampening cuffs circling his wrists, knowing what little good it would do.

The sound of similar chains shifting sounded across from him as Klaus leaned back with a bored sigh and Nico scooted forwards, looking at Diego with his concerned puppy dog eyes.

“Okay, hey, listen… Maybe there was something weird about them. I didn’t get much of a read on them, but they didn’t exactly seem as scared as most would be in that situation. But, regardless, I seriously doubt we are ever going to see them again.” he reasoned, blowing smoke past the bars of their prison.

“They saw you do your thing.” Diego rebutted, coughing softly. He was already remembering why he didn’t smoke, the ashy burn in his lungs tickling his throat with each breath.

“Man, they probably don’t have a clue what was happening. Plus, it’s not like law enforcement will ever believe them if they tried to tell them about three captive kids fuckin’ with a creepy dude’s head.”

“They’re going to send us back out into the field. If we don’t lay low, eventually someone will believe them and start searching.”

“Yeah, like these fucks will let us be found.” Klaus snorted bitterly. “They want us hidden as much as we want ourselves hidden. No one likes a child trafficker!” He raised his voice for the last part, though there was nobody beyond his siblings present to hear it.

“Ah, yes. I forgot the part where we’re hopeless, thanks for reminding me.” Diego snarked, giving his companions a dirty look.

“Dee, c’mon, you gotta get yourself outta this funk. Yeah, our lives are hopeless, but that’s no different than it was yesterday or the day before. Just forget those two and take the win. We saved their lives.” Nico nudged his brother’s knee gently with the toe of his boot. “Plus, none of us got shot.”

“All in all, a successful day at the office.” Klaus grinned.

Diego simply fell quiet, returning to his deflated position in one corner of the cell. He knew that his brothers were probably right, things like this hadn’t come back to bite them in the ass before. However, the nagging feeling in the back of his mind refused to let up and he rarely doubted his own instincts. Regardless of his and Klaus’ identical age, he considered himself the protector of the group, taking on the mantle of older brother as if it was second nature. This responsibility meant he was constantly concerned about things that his two other siblings considered silly, like random strangers finding them in abandoned temples.

The echo of footsteps drew all three of the boys from their thoughts to quickly stub out their cigarettes, hiding the remains in an empty corner of their cell. Two guards walked in, wasting no time in walking to the cell door and unlocking it. All three kids sat still, knowing their chances of taking out both of the men were low and the likelihood of them being shot instead much higher. While they did their best to learn to fight without the use of their powers, which were currently completely useless with the dampening shackles, their lack of proper care and nutrition from their captors left them without much strength to overpower trained mercenaries. Without a word, one of the guards grabbed Diego by the shoulder and dragged him up with a vise-like grip. While Diego simply followed with an unenthusiastic huff, both Klaus and Nico sat up and moved towards the door.

“Nah, nah, hey… Give him a break.” Klaus said, his typical cocky tone faltering ever so slightly. “He did what you wanted today, let him rest first.”

“Sit down. It’s fine.” Diego placated, moving himself towards the door in order to take the attention away from his brothers. The other two reluctantly obeyed, though it was clear they hated the concept very much. Diego mentally patted him on the back for teaching his unruly siblings to listen. A few years ago, they would have protested and thrown fits that could have (and almost had) gotten them killed.

The two mercenaries guided him down the winding stone tunnels of the underground ruins that their operation had turned into a secret basecamp. After a couple of left turns and a descent down a crumbling staircase, the guard behind him shoved him into the large chamber that the army of thugs had filled with supplies and ammunition for the troops. At the head of the room was a staircase held up by wooden scaffolding, a modern addition to the ancient ruins the moment that their captors had moved in. At the top of the stairs sat a large trailer that functioned as the head office.

The guard in the front knocked twice on the door, then shoved Diego unceremoniously inside after a muffled answer granted him access. As Diego regained his balance, he looked up to see the boss man, a smug man of average height and build with a congenial smile forever crossing his lips, but never truly reaching his eyes. Little wisps of his dark brown hair fell into his face, but they were the only unkempt thing about him. Otherwise, his appearance was perfect. Diego truly knew nothing about this man, but was pretty sure he was wealthy, as he carried himself with an air of confidence that could only be gained from a lifetime of success and privilege. The only thing about him that stood to contradict his title as a perfect specimen was his slight limp, which he supplemented with an exquisitely carved silver and golden cane. Rumors floated around the compound as to what caused the injury, anywhere from a congenital birth defect to a boating accident. Truthfully, Diego didn’t give a damn what created the chink in this tyrant’s armor, yet he thanked whatever force in the universe allowed such a thing to occur. It stood as a clear reminder that the man could be bested, that he could be beaten by an opponent. That, one day, he and his brothers could fight for their freedom.

“Ahhh.. Number Two. Please, take a seat.” the man greeted pleasantly, gesturing grandly to the empty seat before his desk. Diego lowered himself into the chair, training his suspicious gaze on the mysterious man.

“Let’s talk about what you found today.” Bossman’s smile shifted ever so slightly, crossing the fine line between sickly sweet and malicious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I've decided it makes the most sense that the UA kiddos don't know much about their boss, I hope I might've given you all enough of an idea as to who their captor is! But if not, you won't be hearing another peep from me until the story unfolds further. Trust me, if I started going on about that now, there'd be no secrets left for this tale and if there's one thing that matters to a journey where these characters collide, it's secrets. Thank you all for your time and attention, I'll see you in the next chapter. :)


	5. Uninvited Guests

#### Chapter 5: Uninvited Guests

Nathan let out a relieved sigh as Elena pulled off the street and into their driveway. As soon as she turned off the ignition, they vacated the vehicle, dragging their luggage inside. Each shuffling step felt like an eternity to the exhausted duo, their dreams of a hot shower and good night’s sleep so close, yet so far away.

“I’m starved.” Elena complained quietly.

“I’ll order us takeout.” Nathan answered, fishing the house keys out of his pocket. “Pizza sound good?”

“Really greasy pizza.” Elena confirmed.

Nathan unlocked the door and pushed it open unceremoniously, stumbling into the door and dropping his bags on the floor. Elena followed close behind, placing her belongings in the pile as well. After closing the door behind them, she reached over in the dark and found the switch on the wall. As the lights flickered to life, both her and her husband's attention was drawn into their sitting room.

“Good evening, Mr. Drake, Mrs. Fisher.” a regal sounding voice sounded, sitting casually one of their cushy armchairs.

“What the fuck…?” Nathan hissed, reaching instinctively to his side, hoping to find a gun, but instead finding empty space.

“Well, that’s no way to greet a guest.” the older man responded, standing up straight using a plain black cane.

Nathan just gawked at the man, unsure of what part of the man to focus on first. His style of dress was extremely outdated, his tweed jacket and gray slacks cleanly pressed. He even sported a monocle over his left eye, the only adornment on his whole person. The strangest part, though, seemed to be the man’s facial hair. His white mustache was thoroughly waxed, both ends pointing upwards to his cheekbones. To complete the look, a thick beard covered his chin, as neatly cut and styled as the rest of his appearance. It was clear that this man, no matter how eccentric, wanted to look elegant.

“Please, sit.” the stranger offered, gesturing to their own couch. Elena and Nathan shared an incredulous look, practically frozen in place. They had both seen a lot of bizzare things in their adventures, both together and apart, but nothing like this man’s invasion of privacy.

“No, I think we’ll stand.” Nate replied slowly, eyes darting ever so quickly to the door. If they had a moment to escape, they’d have to take it. Given the man’s age and use of a walking stick, Nathan figured the two of them could outrun him. Or at least get to the car.

Before they could make a move, however, another man revealed himself, stepping out of the corner of the room towards the couple. He was…. Huge. Extremely tall, grotesquely muscular, and stoic in nature. He wore a long gray trench coat similar in make to the old man’s, but clearly tailored for the giant’s size. He simply crossed his arms, a silent threat.

“Please, sit.” the old man repeated, glancing at his giant partner.

Nathan and Elena carefully made their way over to their tan couch, giving each other confused looks. Once they had settled in, the old man waved off his bodyguard, who settled back against the wall again.

“Who are you?” Elena asked, her expression guarded.

“My name is Reginald Hargreeves, my dear. And this is Number One.” the elderly guy introduced, gesturing first to himself, then his companion.

“Wonderful to meet you.” Nathan drawled sarcastically. “What are you doing in our home?”

“We’re just here to offer you both a deal. Another one of your… jobs, I suppose. One that you’d be foolish to refuse.” Reginald settled back into the armchair that they had found him in.

“Sorry, buddy, you’ve got the wrong people. We’re out of the game.” Nathan tried, knowing that their chances of squirming out of this were slim to none.

“Oh… Out of the game…” Reginald pondered, tugging at his beard, “I suppose that means you’ll have to be dealt with in a.. Messier manner.” he looked casually back towards Number One, lazily pointing towards Elena and Nathan. The man kicked off the wall, causing a nearby bookshelf to rattle, dangerously close to tipping over. As he stepped towards the two, the duo looked at each other and nodded once, accepting the inevitable.

“Y’know what? On second thought, we aren’t that attached to our normal lives, let’s talk.” Nathan said, choking down the bitterness that threatened to seep into his tone. Elena snorted in amusement, reluctantly agreeing.

The man held up his hand, stopping Number One’s advancement with a satisfied smirk. “Wonderful. It would have been terribly unfortunate to rid the world of two… talented individuals like yourselves.”

“Oh yeah, a tragedy…” Elena muttered, eliciting a slight smile from her husband.

“Earlier today, you had the opportunity to meet my competition in Israel. As chance would have it, you managed to make it out of that temple alive. Many of my associates haven’t been so lucky. So, as the most qualified people in the room, I need your skills in order to regain some of my assets that they currently hold.”

“What do you mean by assets?” Nathan asked, eyes squinting ever so slightly in suspicion.

“Three of my agents… I do believe you met them. Two, Four, and Zero.” Reginald replied smoothly, a knowing smile playing at his lips. The expression gave Elena pause, her stomach turning as she looked Hargreeves in the eyes. He knew something that her and Nathan didn’t, which gave her a very bad feeling.

“Yeah, we met them. But I’m not exactly sure I could pick them out of a lineup.” Nathan leaned back in his seat, doing his best to look exasperated. The more he could pull out of this guy, the better. He wasn’t going to walk into this situation blind.

“They’ll all have these symbols.” Reginald grabbed Number One’s arm and pulled his sleeve up slightly, turning his hand so it was palm up. On the inside of his wrist was a tattoo depicting a black umbrella with a red handle inside a circle.

“Same spot?” Elena asked.

“Yes, my dear. Same spot.”

“And what if we say no?” Nathan questioned, leaning forwards to rest his elbows on his knees.

“Then, I suppose I’ll have to tell Number One to call Seven. I’m sure that Mr. Victor Sullivan and the elder Drake will be disappointed to know that their faith in you both was ill placed.” Reginald sighed dramatically, looking back to Number One, who was already pulling out a cell phone.

“Okay, okay, just wait!” Nathan griped. “Give me a minute, I gotta check.” he pulled out his own cell phone, watching for a reaction from the intruders. Neither looked overly concerned. They knew he wasn’t going to call for help.

‘Hey, man, you being held hostage by lunatics too?’ Nathan texted his brother, tilting his phone towards Elena as she leaned over his shoulder to peek at the screen as well. The response was almost immediate.

‘Affirmative. They tell you the deal?’

‘Yeah, I don’t like it’

‘Join the club. They threatened you both, got Sull all riled’

‘Threatened you both too, we take the job’ With that final message, Nathan placed his phone gingerly on the coffee table, letting out an exhausted sigh. “Fine, I’ll bite. Give me the information and get the fuck out of my house.”

“So insolent for a man whose family is on the precipice of annihilation.” Reginald scolded, shaking his head like a disappointed father. He stood, his gaze moving over to Elena. “There are files on your desk. Right next to that draft of your latest article on the exotic locales in Southeast Asia. A truly thrilling piece.”

“Great.” Elena replied dryly. “Now get the fuck out of my house.”

With a loud “tsk” and a readjustment of his monocle, the former stranger known as Reginald Hargreeves left, his Number One in tow. As soon as the door closed, both Nathan and Elena erupted into movement. Nathan headed to lock the door and check the rest of the house for any sign of tampering and Elena headed to her office to gather the information left by Hargreeves regarding the next job.

In five minutes, the two met back up in the sitting room, both pacing like caged animals. Nathan continuously tried both Sam and Sully’s phone, cursing every time it went to voicemail. Elena skimmed the documents held within the thick file with all the precision of a skilled researcher, gathering information as fast as possible.

Finally, on the fifth try, Samuel Drake picked up his phone. “Jesus, Nathan, you coulda given me a minute.”

“What did they say to you?” Nathan demanded, finally letting the frustrated confusion slip into his voice.

“They were talkin’ about how some bastard named Reginald was with you, givin’ us an angle on a job. Something about recovering his stolen assets.”

“Yeah, those assets are the kids we saw. They must’ve gotten taken at some point. He said that the guys we saw in the temple were his competition.”

“Okay… Last time I checked, we didn’t run rescue missions for other people’s people.” Sam pointed out.

“We don’t have much of a choice, now do we? This guy has connections, Sam. He knew way too much about us.”

Nathan heard his older brother sigh heavily on the other end. “Victor, we’re outta options. Pack your shit.” Sam called away from the phone, then returned to speaking with his younger brother. “We’ll meet you there. Where are we headed?”

“Hun, where we headed?” Nathan asked.

“Back to Israel, different spot in the desert. I’ll text them coordinates.”

“Coordinates are on the way. Bring guns, lots of guns.” Nathan relayed, already heading up to his office in the attic to retrieve his gear.

“Sure thing, Little Brother. Be safe.” Sam stated, his voice dipping instinctively, keeping the concerned sentiment between himself and Nathan.

“You too.” With that, Nathan Drake hung up his phone and climbed the ladder to his office, pushing open the trap door with ease. He marched across the floor with determination and dug around in his storage trunks until he found what he was looking for.

Amidst the personal relics from his numerous adventures lay his well worn shoulder holster and his leather-bound notebook. He grabbed the notebook and checked through it, confirming that he had enough empty pages left for whatever came ahead. After he stored it in his pocket, he grabbed the holster and stood up straight, letting the trunk thud closed. He took a good long look at the beloved object, remembering exactly how often it had been the difference between life and death for himself and his family. This item stood for the cause of every single near death experience he had. Hell, it was still ravaged with claw marks from the terrifying creatures created by the curse of El Dorado, flecked with blood from the gutshot he received in Nepal, water damaged from his perilous swim in the waters of Iram, and seared black from the flames on Henry Avery’s ship. This amalgamation of leather straps and metal snaps was the only goddamn thing standing between him and a simple life.

And he’d be lying if he said he didn’t savor the adrenaline surging into his veins as he slung it over his shoulders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! So now both baddies have been introduced (one much more clearly than the second). I'm honestly so glad that I got the writing bug back. It's been forever since I've written, but it feels so freeing. Like I haven't been breathing since i stopped writing and now I'm finally getting something vital back for myself. I hope that dedication shows in the writing. I hate posting things that aren't good online because I feel like it's unfair to the plot for me to do it badly. So, if I go for a little bit without posting, bear with me. I'm just trying to make it as perfect as possible. See you in the next one :)


	6. My Blood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title is also from the album Trench. That's all, have fun!

#### Chapter 6: My Blood

About an hour passed before Diego was returned to his cell, shaking off one guard’s hands as he reentered the dismal cage with his two siblings. As he sat down on the hard stone floor, he glanced up at the guards expectantly, waiting for them to shut the door.

“Take a picture, dollface, it’ll last longer.” Klaus crooned, giving the two men his most exaggerated flirtatious grin.

“Zero.” the bigger one ground out, taking a step into the cell with his pistol in hand.

“No, that’s not happening.” Diego said defensively, standing up and pushing Nico's skinny frame behind himself.

“Now!” the guard demanded, lifting his gun and aiming right between Klaus’ eyes. Klaus kept his expression bored, but Diego could see him tense. Diego bit his cheek hard, trying to find the best way to negotiate the situation. Not only did he have to worry about his siblings individually, but the two seemed to share each other’s pain. Diego figured it had something to do with the way Zero was made. Reginald, in all of his sadistic glory, used Klaus’ DNA to create a genetically modified child with powers just like the rest of his adoptees, hoping a test tube baby would be far more compliant than Number Four. Aside from his obvious failure in the temperment department, he also genetically entangled the two beyond what he had ever imagined. When one was harmed, the other felt it. Pain seemed to fade more quickly for Klaus than for Nico, but none of them could figure out if that was due to pain tolerance or an advantage for Klaus since he was the original specimen. Either way, Diego did not want to learn whether or not they would also share a death.

“Diego, move.” Nico huffed quietly, unceremoniously shoving past his brother and walking up to the two guards. They grabbed him by the chain connecting his cuffs and tugged him from the cell, slamming the door shut behind them and locking it with a loud click.

“Fuck…” Diego groaned, turning around and kicking the wall with the sole of his boot.

“Do you know what they’re doing?” Klaus asked, pointing to where their younger brother disappeared. “Because that’s not normal.”

“I just talked to Bossman… Gave him a rundown of the trip today. He started getting a little twitchy when we talked about the witnesses, but Dax assured him they were dead.”

“Do you think he knows what we did?”

“I’m not sure… but when we described the people, he got all suspicious. He’s had me describe witnesses to him before, but usually he just ignores it. This time he got… almost mad.”

“Well, this can’t be good.” Klaus stated matter of factly, plopping down in one of the corners and sighing deeply.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Nathan stood up on the back of the Jeep that Sully was operating, squinting yet again into the bright desert sun. He looked around slowly, surveying the scene with the intensity of a predator stalking his prey. He felt his brother stand up beside him, both holding onto the bars of the car’s roll cage.

“I got a bad feeling about this, Nathan.” Sam said, speaking loud enough to be heard above the wind, but quiet enough to keep their conversation private. “This isn’t a treasure hunt or some petty theft. It’s people. Children.”

“I know. That’s why, once we get the whole story, I suggest we find a way to fuck the old bastard over.” Nathan replied casually, his eyes never leaving the horizon.

“Thought you said this guy was dangerous.” Sam looked over at his brother. As much as he respected his brother’s newfound life of semi-normalcy, he was glad to have Nathan at his side again. As much as he enjoyed his jobs with Sully and other contacts he had gathered since his freedom from prison, there was nobody he trusted as much as his little brother to have his back. And, as much as Sam loved Elena, he didn’t exactly love not being there to watch Nathan like a hawk. Yet another remnant of his childhood.

“He is. But I’m not about to go much further in all of this until we get some answers. Something is off about the way this guy is with his ‘assets’.” Nathan explained, throwing air quotes around the final word.

“Fair enough. What’s our play?”

“We’re gonna have to split up. There’s three of them and four of us. We’ll know more about where everyone should be headed when we get in there.”

“And how are we going to get them out of there?”

“Hopefully they come willingly. If not… We figure that out later.”

Sam chuckled darkly, looking over at his brother with his trademark grin. “Glad you have everything worked out.”

“Always do.” Nathan replied with a similar smile.

“Death trap ahead!” Elena called up to the other two from the passenger seat, pointing out the windshield towards the growing mountain masking their destination. Both Drakes sat back down and leaned back in their seats. In a few moments, they pulled up behind a large boulder providing shade, cutting the engine.

“And now, we wait.” Sully huffed, retrieving one of his trademark cigars from his pocket and sparking up. The quartet settled in, laying low until nightfall.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Nico did not know where his two guards were taking him, but he generally assumed it couldn’t be good.

Each winding corridor was unfamiliar to him, he had never been in this wing of the ruins before. However, the fact that the halls were flooded with the sounds of banging and yelling made Nico feel incredibly uneasy.

“Hey, if you guys are gonna drag me through here, can I at least get a nice tour?” he asked snarkily, letting out a pained huff as the man on his left punched him in the temple. He fell quiet, simply letting them lead him down several more shadowy hallways.

Finally, after a total of ten minutes, the guards pushed open a wooden door into a large, dimly lit room. Darkness crept out from each corner eerily, the only light coming from a small bulb hanging from the ceiling.

“Stereotypical much?” Nico muttered as the guards brought him over to a metal chair. As they sat him down and recuffed his arms to the chair, he looked beneath his feet and saw a gray tarp stained dark brown with dried blood. A sharp, cold feeling shot down Nico’s body, settling heavily in his stomach as he realized how fucked he really was.

It took only a few moments for the soldiers to strap his ankles to the legs of the chair, during which Nico’s eyes flicked nervously around the room. So far, there was no obvious form of escape, especially given his powerless state, thanks to the power dampening effects of the cuffs. The guards moved away from him, moving back to stand at the door, almost completely fading into the dark. As if on cue, the Bossman pushed the door open and entered, followed by a sinister looking man that Nico had never met before.

“Hello, Zero.” the Bossman greeted, his voice dangerously kind. “I hope my men treated you well on the way here.”

“They never do.” Nico said in a similar tone of false positivity. Of the three brothers, Nico was brought in front of the Bossman the least. He figured it had to do with his age, as the Bossman didn’t seem like the kind of person to waste his time on people he saw as lesser than himself. All Nico knew was that his abilities did not work on him, which frustrated him beyond belief. It happened occasionally, where he would be unable to alter the feelings of those around him. After years of trial and error, Nico had finally come to understand it came to an innate mental strength possessed by the individual. This armor typically came in the form of fierce determination, a refusal to let anything stand between a person and their goals. However, with a man like the one standing before Nico, that level of determination could prove deadly for many unworthy people.

The Bossman chuckled softly at the child’s snarky response, then turned to face the guards. “You can leave us. I’m sure Zero here won’t cause any trouble, will he?” he turned once again to face his captive, the same plastic smile set in place.

“Scout’s honor.” Nico drawled sarcastically, shifting slightly in his chair.

After the two men stationed at the door had ducked out, the Bossman’s silent partner moved to lean up against the wall casually. Nico eyed them both, catching onto what was about to happen. They were predators, he was prey. Or, at least, he would be if he didn’t cooperate.

“Zero, Dax tells me that you took care of a couple of witnesses at the temple today. A man and a woman that showed up with a video camera?” the Bossman prompted, walking nonchalantly up to his captive.

“Yeah. So?” Nico asked, squinting slightly as he got closer.

“So, I think you spared them.”

Nico’s blood ran cold as the words left his captor’s mouth, but he tried his hardest to keep the fear from creeping into his features. “Why would I spare them?”

“Because you are soft. All three of you are. I know you’ve done it before and I’ve let it slide. But now… Now you’ve let a man go that won’t just leave us alone.” the Bossman purred, kneeling down at the foot of Nico’s chair, resting his elbows on the child’s knees. 

“What… What do you mean?” Nico’s voice trembled, bringing his fear to light as he attempted to squirm away from contact with the man.

“What I mean is that I think you’ve let go one of the biggest dangers to my entire operation… But, to confirm, I need to know what you learned about him.”

“Nothing. We didn’t talk or anything, just told them to get lost.”

The Bossman laughed darkly, standing up, turning his back, and taking a step away. Just as Nico thought he was in the clear, the man whirled on him and landed a solid punch to the boy’s right cheek. Nico cried out in pain as his head snapped to the side.

“I know that you don’t need to talk to people to learn about them. You read them, Zero. Don’t pretend as if I don’t know what aura manipulation is. Tell me what you know and I won’t leave you alone with Ferguson here.”

Nico looked between the two men, both of whom were fixing him with expectant gazes. “Really? You’re playing Good Cop, Bad Cop?” He knew that both men assumed he was the weakest link between him and his two brothers, given that he was the youngest of the three. Nico admitted that there was a possibility of that being true, but he figured that being the weakest link out of all of them still meant he was pretty damn strong.

The Bossman sighed, shaking his head like a disappointed parent as he turned and strolled towards the door. “Ferguson, make sure you leave something left for his brothers to see. If he doesn’t talk, I can at least use him as an example.”

Nico sat up straight in his chair, making eye contact with Ferguson as the man approached, a sadistic smirk playing at his lips. He took a deep breath, pushing the fear he felt towards the back of his mind. “Just so you know, my safe word is apricot.”

And then, the world blurred into a pained haze broken only by one phrase, repeated after each and every barrage.

“Tell me about Nathan Drake.”

Nico wasn’t sure who that was, but if it was the man they met, he figured that the Bossman’s concern could clear up the unusual sentiments he felt coming from him. While he looked unassuming, both him and the woman had auras far stronger than most of the asshats he dealt with on a daily basis. They clearly had more experience than their appearances let on. Nico could feel that they had seen the most beautiful heights and horrendous lows, all while coming back from whatever journey they faced unscathed. Of course, none of these feelings collected by Nico came with context. He had no clue who they were, what they meant to each other, or what they meant for him and his three brothers. But, he did know one thing…

The Bossman was scared. And for good reason.


	7. Welcome to The Trench

#### Chapter 7: Welcome to The Trench

Though the group had just snuck into the compound thirty minutes ago, Sam Drake could tell that this expedition was well funded. The amount of ammunition cases stacked about the ruins alone was enough to supply a small army. Of course, that means the guy in charge had hired enough people to use said munitions. As they looked out over what everyone assumed was the main chamber, all four adventurers couldn’t help but trade concerned glances.

“Okay, kid, what’s our play?” Sully asked, looking to his right at Nathan. Sam peeked over the railing they were using as cover, then looked over to Elena, who was doing the same. He gave her his most reassuring grin, but received only a grimace in reply. Sam couldn’t blame her, they needed a solid plan.

“We have to try to do this quietly…” Nathan whispered, leaning closer to the other three. “No guns, if we can help it. If we split up, we can cover the most ground. We keep in contact using these.” he pointed out the small communication device in his ear. The rest nodded in agreement. 

“I saw this one hallway a little ways back. Struck me as creepy. I’ll head there.” Sam offered.

“Got it. I’m gonna find a way to see what’s happening over there.” Nathan pointed to the large wooden building at the end of the chamber. It was clearly some sort of base of operations, especially given the amount of guards milling around.

“There was a huge wing we passed on the way in… Seems like there were enough goons over there to make it important.” Elena stated, nodding to a clear passage to their left.

“I’ll come with you, then. We can check through there faster.” Sully said.

“Great. If something goes wrong, let everyone know. Keep in touch.” Nathan finished, then ducked behind another crate as he began working his way towards his target. Elena and Sully dropped off to the left, hoping to find a shortcut to their mystery wing, shuffling as quietly as possible.

Sam sighed and glanced out into the room once more. When he was sure that nobody was looking, he headed back down the hallway they had entered the room from, keeping his footfalls light and watching for people coming his way. 

“This place is huge…” Elena commented softly over their earpieces. “Let us know if you guys get any leads. Sully and I could spend hours searching.”

As their line of communication fell silent once more, Sam came upon his goal. The hallway did seem fairly ominous and, while it was cliche, most dimly lit hallways had something disturbing behind it’s doors. Beyond it’s unnerving exterior, there was absolutely nothing drawing attention to this hallway. No guards, no supply cases, no sound coming from any of the rooms.

As Sam started his cautious walk down the passage, he began to notice that many of the doors were blocked off with stones, clearly fallen from whatever destructive methods were used to access these underground structures. Try as he might, he couldn’t seem to move any of the piles. After each failed attempt, he moved on. If he couldn’t move the stones, then neither could the guards. They’d have no reason to keep kids behind them.

However, as he reached the end of this hall, he saw a large wooden door with a small amount of light shining out from underneath. As he came within a foot of the door, he could hear some quiet noises from inside, which only drew him closer. Pressing his ear to the door, he felt ice cold fear drop into his stomach as he heard the sound of footsteps coming closer. He looked around frantically for a place to hide, but there were no notches in the walls or doorways to step into.

The creak of the wooden door meant he was out of time. In a last ditch effort, Sam dove over to the wall by the door, pressing himself against it and holding his breath. Hardly a second later, the door swung open quickly, only inches away from hitting Sam before it was caught by whoever was exiting. When the door was slammed shut, Sam saw an angry man in its wake. He closed his eyes, trying to keep himself as inconspicuous as possible. To his immense relief, he heard footsteps retreating down the hallway. As soon as the echoing footfalls faded away, Sam opened his eyes and breathed out a heavy sigh.

After his moment of peace, Sam pushed off the wall and grabbed the door’s handle. He put his ear to the door, listening for more voices and hearing only silence. Giving it a hopeful twist, he found that it was still unlocked. He wasted no time in pushing into the room, turning and closing the door softly behind him.

When Sam turned around to face the room, he almost didn’t notice the small, trembling form staring at him. His cautious mind took in the small details, a habit he picked up in prison. The walls were heavily padded with soundproofing foam, explaining the lack of noise from the end of the corridor. While the only illumination in the room was a ring of light created by a small bulb on the ceiling, he could note folding tables set up around the room, each holding a vast array of tools, the likes of which he couldn’t make out, but wasn’t interested in looking further into.

When his mind finally allowed him to focus on the person in the chair in the center of the room, his heart dropped into his stomach. The guy… The boy, a child… was shirtless, bare foot, and bound to the chair with thick steel cuffs. His skinny form was slick with sweat and blood. A countless number of long, shallow cuts littered his body, some of them still fresh enough to bleed. Large, multicolored bruises were forming on his chest and cheek, indicating that whatever sick son of a bitch was slicing on this kid also decided to take a few swings. On top of it all, his hair was dripping wet, leaving him trembling with the cold.

“Aw, Christ…” Sam murmured, taking a couple of steps towards the boy in the chair. He was clearly the tall and lanky type, but he also seemed malnourished. His ribs were just a little too prominent, his cheekbones a little too sharp. All of it ignited that fire in Sam’s belly, the compassionate one he had tried so hard to put out for thirteen years while in prison. “Who the fuck…?”

Sam stopped in his tracks as he saw the kid shrink back against the chair, trying his best to stay away from the older man. Sam stopped his approach almost immediately, putting his hands up gently in surrender. “Who are you…?” the kid asked, clearly trying to keep the fear out of his voice. He did better than most kids his age probably would, but the telltale wavering was there.

“Hey… My name is Sam. I’m here with some other people, we came to get you outta here.” Sam explained, keeping his voice quiet as he listened for returning footsteps. They only had so much time to get out of here before things got messy.

“Why?” the child asked suspiciously, looking the man up and down with a hesitant glare. The expression reminded him of the look Nathan used to give people when they first ran away from the orphanage together, like he was imitating an older sibling in an attempt to seem more threatening.

“Because… well, honestly, it’s a long story that I wasn’t really there for. Point is, we need to get moving if we’re going to get outta here.”

“How do I know you’re not just going to kill me?” Okay, Sam had to admit the kid had a point. With a sigh, Sam scratched his head, looking at the four walls like they could close in at any moment.

“Listen, kiddo, you saved my little brother’s life. You let him and his wife go when you coulda just killed him. In my book, that makes you a keeper.”

“You’re with those two?” he asked, a brief spark of hope reaching his eyes.

“Yeah, we got a whole group together. Time for a prison break.” Sam said, smiling excitedly as the kid broke into a grin.

“Okay, okay.. So you gotta go find this metal strip with a purple stripe around it. That’ll get me outta this shit.” he instructed, already wriggling against his restraints. Sam nodded and headed towards the darkened tables, sifting through various tools, most of which were stained dark brown or red. After a few moments, he found the item he was searching for, gawking at the pulsating light from the deep purple scanner.

“Holy shit, they’ve got some high tech bullshit here.” Sam muttered, moving over to the bound kid and tapping the strip to the similarly colored touchpad on the cuffs.

“Tell me about it.” he huffed, rubbing his bloodied wrists as Sam repeated the process with the shackles surrounding his ankles. Once the boy was free, he attempted to stand, wavering slightly at the effort. Sam instinctively grabbed the kid’s elbow, steadying him.

“Okay… take it slow. And here, cover up.” Sam shrugged off his open denim button up and put it over the kid’s shoulders.

“... Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it. What’s your name, kid?”

“Zero.” the kid answered, almost as if it were an automatic response.

“Got an actual name? I’m not in the habit of calling people by numbers.”

“Yeah.. yeah. It’s Nico.” the boy said, putting his arms through the sleeves with a wince.

“Well, Nico, you look like shit. Wanna get out of here?” Sam asked, giving the kid a smile.

“More than anything.” Nico confirmed, starting towards the door with a determined expression.

Before either one of them could open the door, it swung back open to reveal the torturer. Sam went to reach for Nico, ready to defend the both of them against the large man, who looked incredibly angry that his captive was free. However, Nico was faster, slipping from his grip and placing a single finger in the middle of the man’s chest.

“Go to sleep.” Nico commanded through gritted teeth. To Sam’s surprise, the man’s eyes slid closed and he collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud. Nico knelt down next to the unconscious sadist and began rifling through his pockets, tossing items to the floor that he considered useless.

“How did you…?” Sam asked, voice a mixture of astonishment and fear.

“Are you asking for the superhuman talk? Or do you want a lesson on biochemistry?” Nico asked absentmindedly, moving from Ferguson’s coat to his pant pockets.

“Superhuman?” Sam questioned.

“Oh, okay. So my brothers and I have powers. All different ones. We were all born that way… Well, technically I was made that way. But they were born that way. There’s probably more of them out in the world, too, but we just happen to be the unlucky fucks that got stuck with this gig.” Nico rambled, grinning excitedly as he found what he was looking for. He held up two strips similar to the one that freed him, but each equipped with a different colored scanner, one pink and the other blue. “And my power just so happens to be fucking with people’s heads.”

“How so?”

“Aura manipulation. I see people with auras, which reflect their emotions. When I fuck with their auras, I fuck with their emotions. When I fuck with their emotions, I fuck with their biochemistry and can use the vulnerablity to manipulate their actions. Hence, he’s asleep.” Nico stood with a slight wince, gesturing down at the unconscious form beneath them. “Can we get going? These gotta get to whoever is getting my brothers.” Nico tossed the strips to Sam, who caught them, glancing over them and putting them in his pocket.

“I feel like I should be more freaked out.” Sam commented, heading past Nico and down the hallway.

“I’d agree, but I can tell you’ve seen some weird ass shit.” Nico shrugged. “You’re all gray around the edges. Grey means experience. You've got more than most.”

Sam opened his mouth to comment, then snapped it shut. Now was not the time or the place to try and understand the genetic anomalies that created this kid. Instead, he turned around and walked backwards, looking Nico over to assess his injuries.

“We gotta get you back to the car, you’re not gonna make it through the rest of this.”

“I’ll be fine, the adrenaline will keep pumping until we finish this. After that, I make no promises.”

Sam was about to open his mouth to argue, to tell this goddamn child that he wasn’t going to make it that far with how broken his body looked, but he was cut off by the earpiece crackling to life with Sully’s voice.

“Hey, we found two of them, but they’re skittish. Not a chance that they’ll trust us. Any ideas?” he asked.

“I’ve got the third one here, hold up…” Sam replied, then looked at Nico hopefully. “My buddies, they’re with your brothers. Any input?” 

“Tell them ‘Ut Malum Pluvia’.” Nico answered almost immediately, as if they had planned for this very occurrence.

“‘When Evil Rains?’” Sam translated, face scrunching up in confusion.

“Oooh, good Latin. Yes, ‘When Evil Rains’. Umbrellas.” the kid raised his wrist casually, revealing the umbrella tattooed on the inside of his wrist.

“Got it.” Sam nodded, turning back to his earpiece. “Sully, say ‘Ut Malum Pluvia’.”

After a few moments of walking in silence, Sully returned to report back.

“We’ve got them on our side, but they need keys.”

“On our way to you two, sit tight.”

As Sam and Nico returned to the main passage from their shadowy hallway, their heads whipped towards the large chamber several yards to their right, where the clamor of gunfire echoed off the walls.

“What is that?” Nico inquired in a hushed tone, not wanting to draw attention towards them.

“My idiot brother.” Sam admitted with a deep sigh.


	8. Welcome to The Trench II

#### Chapter 8: Welcome to The Trench II

Klaus had spent the last four hours writhing in pain on the cold floor of their cell, so the moment he stilled and his body relaxed with a couple panting breaths, Diego was thrilled there was a respite from the seemingly endless torture.

“Fuck… these people…” Klaus groaned out, pushing himself up to lean weakly against the wall. “They’re… totally fucking up Nico’s shit. They’re gonna kill him.”

“We need to do something.” Diego stated firmly, standing up and shaking at the bars of their door for the three hundredth time that hour.

“Like what? We’re a little stuck.” Klaus chuckled bitterly. “You’re welcome to try, but last I checked, you weren’t the one with super strength.”

“I… I don’t know.. But we can’t just sit here!” Diego snapped, turning to look at his brother.

“That’s about all I can do. As soon as they’re done giving Nico his lunch break, you’re on your own bucko.” Klaus said, his typically cheerful tone dripping with exhausted sarcasm.

Diego ran a hand through his hair desperately, he knew that Klaus was right, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. “What do they think he knows anyways?!”

“Probably assume that he got more nosy than he really did when it came to giving that couple a way out.” Klaus grumbled, patting his pockets, clearly in the hopes of finding a cigarette. When he found none, he slumped back up against the wall. He was doing the best he could to regain his strength, but his bones were practically screaming with exhaustion. He couldn’t imagine how his brother felt. One of the benefits of not directly experiencing the pain was the lack of injuries, making the dull ache far less intense than what the real thing would be like.

“Are we sure he didn’t?” Diego questioned.

“I mean, I assume he woulda spilled the metaphorical beans already if he did. He’s not a fan of relentless beatings.”

“Good point.” Diego mumbled, leaning back against the wall.

Before either brother could get another word in edgewise, their thoughts were interrupted by two strangers entering the room, an older man and a young woman, both with guns strapped to their hips. Diego immediately stood at attention, his eyes drawn to the woman. He had seen her before… At the temple days ago.

“Found ‘em.” the old man said, drawing the woman’s attention to the cell. Klaus stood shakily, giving them both his most confused look. 

The woman turned eagerly, crossing the room to stand at the man’s side. “Good job, Sully.”

“All in a day’s work,” he replied.

“Excuse me, who the fuck are you two?” Klaus asked in a polite tone, raising his index finger to bring attention to himself.

“We’re your way outta this joint.” the guy called Sully replied dryly. “A little appreciation would be nice.”

“Yeah… No. There is no way we are going with you two.” Diego stated firmly. “And anyways, I told you to run.” he gestured to the woman.

“Yeah, I have a habit of not doing what I’m told.” she shrugged. “My name’s Elena Fisher.”

“That’s nice. Now, if you could just head on out the way you came, that’d be lovely.” Klaus smiled.

“Not a chance, kid. We’re your one ticket outta here.”

“And we both said we’d pass.” Diego snarled back.

“Wait, wait, wait..” Elena interjected, putting up a hand to silence the room. “Aren’t there three of you?”

“Yep.” Klaus answered. “Unfortunately, he’s off at the market picking up some fixin’s for dinner, so you’ll have to stop back another time…” He trailed off, rambling slightly as he winced. Something must have jostled his twin brother, causing a flare-up in one of the fresh wounds.

“Starting again?” Diego asked, sound more than a little nervous as his eyes darted to Klaus’ expression. 

“Don’t think so. Just a little boo boo.”

Sully huffed in frustration and fell back to the far wall of the room, putting a finger to his ear and whispering quietly. Elena watched him, staying in place. After a moment, Sully came walking back towards the kids with a newfound vigor.

“Your brother has a message.” he stated, looking the two brothers over, trying to gauge their reactions.

“What the fuck do you have our brother for-...” Diego started, mouth snapping shut as the woman interrupted him.

“Ut Malum Pluvia.”

Klaus and Diego both stopped in their tracks, looking between one another. Of course, now that had to complicate things. The plan was always, if they were separated, to use that phrase, Hargreeves’ cursed motto, as a code. It meant that, if someone besides one of them came to find them, they were trustworthy. Instead of the three siblings functioning as the umbrellas, it was a moment when they had to allow themselves to be sheltered. It was a sign of implicit trust, blind faith in anyone who spoke those words. The only time a phrase like this were to be used by anyone besides one another meant the situation was dire and hope was the only thing left to cling to as they sat on the precipice of annihilation.

Those three words meant that each and every action following was a last ditch effort at life.

“Okay, what are we doing?” Diego asked, looking between the duo standing on the other side of the bars. Both stared at them in shocked silence for a moment before snapping out of it, Elena going to check that they’re route out of the room was still clear.

“I can pry this door, no problem. But those cuffs are a different story.” Sully pointed at the shackles confining both boys’ wrists. They were clearly more technically advanced than typical handcuffs.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t try. It’ll electrocute us if you do. There’s specific keys we need.” Diego explained, showing off the colored touchpad on his own restraints.

“Mine’s pink.” Klaus added, mirroring his brother’s movements.

“Alright, just… lemme see..” Sully said, touching the device in his ear yet again. “We’ve got them on our side, but they need keys.” he reported back. After a few moments of silence, he nodded to himself.

“Alright, we need to wait here. Our buddy Sam is on his way here with your other brother.”

“Nico probably jumped someone important.” Klaus grinned.

“With any luck.” Diego agreed. “In the meantime, mind letting us outta here?”

“Yeah. Sully, help me out here.” Elena commented, returning with a curved bit of pipe. Wedging it between the door and the doorjamb, the two used the scrap metal as a pry bar. With a few moments of straining, the door swung open with a clang, causing all of them to look around to see if they had drawn attention to themselves. When the corridor outside remained silent, the two boys stepped free of their confines, looking around with a hesitant sense of delight. 

“What’re your names?” Sully asked, looking the two over curiously. They were in rough shape, their clothes dirty and torn, hanging limply from their skinny forms. The bigger, darker skinned kid looked to be in better shape, having some actual muscle definition to him. But the real lanky one seemed like he was almost on death’s door.

“Diego, Klaus.” the kid gestured first to himself, then to the skinny one. 

“Well, Victor Sullivan. But most people call me Sully.”

Diego opened his mouth to reply, but was cut short by the sound of an explosion nearby. All four of them turned towards the wall facing the main chamber, which buckled, falling apart in a shower of stone and dust.

“Get down!” Sully yelled, watching the other three hide themselves away before tucking himself behind a wooden crate.

Through the newly created hole in the wall flew a single form on a well worn rope. As soon as he was through, the line snapped, dropping him unceremoniously on the floor.

“Oh, crap…” the guy groaned.

“Nate!” Sully exclaimed, both him and Elena jumping forward to pull him out of the way of the gunfire that started almost immediately after his landing. As soon as he was away from the hole in the wall, he used his friends’ embraces to stand, scrambling for cover himself.

“What the hell happened?” Elena asked her husband, raising her voice over the hail of bullets.

“Rafe happened.”


	9. Welcome to The Trench III

#### Chapter 9: Welcome to The Trench III

The moment Nathan Drake set eyes on the modest wooden structure in the midst of the underground base clearly working as a main hideout for a treasure hunting army, he knew he had to get inside.

While he was focused on the mission at hand, rescuing three kids with mysterious qualities, he also had a secondary goal. He needed to learn what this operation was after and why it took bulldozing innocent lives and tearing apart seemingly inconspicuous temples. While he was out of the game, he had been keeping tabs on the latest rumors through casual conversations with his contacts. Before yesterday, he had heard nothing of this scale. Which meant whoever was in charge had the ability to keep big things under the radar. It was a really talented set up.

But, from his years of experience, he had also learned that people dedicated enough to finding lost relics to hire mercenaries and kill witnesses weren’t just in search of riches. They wanted power beyond anything they could gain through typical means. Whether it was ancient curses, mystic stones of power, or enough poison in a water supply to destroy an entire city, these people were willing to give up anything and everything to get their hands on it and use it to further their own agendas. Nathan did not consider himself a hero by any means, but his contempt for corrupt assholes was fuel enough to convince him to play the part for long enough to stop those who looked for such powerful weaponry.

As he knelt on the unlit catwalk over the structure, however, he felt as though he was getting himself involved in something far bigger than anything he had seen before. A heavy feeling in his gut told him that, once he saw the information hidden within the confines of the building below, he would be unable to leave this job behind. There would be no quick resolution or easy solution or backing out. He would be thoroughly entangled in the life he had fought so hard to leave. He had truly reached the point of no return, possibly for years to come. This was beyond anything he and his family had ever seen before. Even considering taking this mystery on meant he was playing with fire, and he had a penchant for getting burned.

Nathan wished, for Elena’s sake, he could say he hesitated for longer. That he took longer to consider all his options. That he even turned around and headed off to find Sam. That he focused on the task at hand and nothing else. That he had allowed himself to pass up the responsibility of yet another adventure, where death lurked around each and every turn. But, deep inside, he knew that this was the life he was meant to live. He relished the thrill, the ice cold adrenaline, and the pit in his stomach every time he found himself on the business end of a firearm. He loved their company, their show, and their peaceful life so much, but he couldn’t deny the part of himself that never felt more alive than when he was defying the odds and coming out on top.

And, as he dropped softly onto the roof of the structure below, he hoped his wife could forgive him for his countless sins.

Peeking in through a small skylight a couple of feet away from his landing spot, he saw that the room was uninhabited. Thanking every single deity he could think of for this stroke of good luck, he slowly pushed the glass pane open and dropped into the room, wincing as the floorboards beneath his feet creaked ever so slightly. When nobody rushed to investigate the noise he made, he took the opportunity to look around.

While the one room building was plainly decorated with folding chairs and tables, the walls were plastered with papers, both modern and ancient. Maps with locations and coordinates marked with thumbtacks drew his eye first and he made his way over quickly. There were three locations mapped out, seemingly random, but all in the area. Upon closer inspection, however, he found the same numbers marked in its corresponding spot on the map.

“Twenty three, twenty seven…” he murmured to himself, pulling out his smartphone and snapping a quick picture of all three coordinates.

Moving on, he shifted to the left where he found pages clearly taken from some yellowed inventory sheets, detailing the contents of what Nathan could only assume was a cart or ship or other form of transportation. The list consisted of lavish riches, anything from golden trinkets to large jewels. Taped up next to these sheets, however, were pages of research on other objects, though these ones far more well known than the others.

“The Holy Grail…” Nathan quickly retrieved his phone and took a picture. Glancing next to said research were written versions of the legends paired with actual historical events. “It’s real…?”

“Yes, Nate, it’s very real.” a familiar voice drawled behind him. Nathan turned slowly, facing the supposedly dead figure behind him.

“Rafe…? You’re supposed to be…”

“Dead? Yeah, thanks for reminding me.” Rafe snarked back, taking a slow step forwards. Nathan noticed the gilded cane as it tapped on the floor, supporting a good portion of Rafe’s weight. “Alas, here I am. And I don’t even get a hello?”

“How did you even make it out of Avery’s ship?” Nathan asked, taking a step back, keeping his distance from the man.

“The benefit of paying mercenaries well is that they’ll get you out of any situation, so long as they end up getting their money. Apparently, that also includes sinking pirate ships.”

“You were crushed!”

“Oh, don’t remind me.” Rafe said, a dangerous laugh falling from his lips. “But, the best doctors money can buy did what they could to fix me up. Granted, I’ve got a lot of scars. Oh- and two of these.” The man lifted the leg of his pants with one hand, revealing a metallic silver limb with moving joints beneath the fabric. “But I see you’re doing very well for yourself. Still slumming it as a two-bit thief.”

“Well, y’know, they say you should do what you love.” Nate said casually, taking another step backwards. “And I see you’re still acting like a serial killer.” He gestured to the cluttered walls of the room. “You’re a fantastic interior designer, by the way.”

“Ah, yes. My newest escapade. Well, you’ll be glad to know that I’ve allied people far more capable than yourself. They have an unfortunate… stubbornness… to them, but that can be easily fixed.” Rafe took another step towards Nathan, who brushed awkwardly past a table covered in artifacts and research.

“Oh, well, that’s wonderful. If my services are no longer needed, then I’ll be on my way. It truly was a pleasure to catch up, we should do it again sometime.” Nathan stalled with a cocky grin.

“Oh, Nathan… You know how this goes. I can’t let you leave after you've seen everything.”

“Sure you can. I’m retired, I won’t tell a soul.”

“Well, that may be true… But there’s also the fact that I hate you.” Rafe reminded him, giving him one of his most sarcastic disappointed faces. “Sorry, man.”

“Oh, I’m sure you will be.” Nathan agreed, then turned on a dime, throwing himself out of the window behind him with a smash of glass. As the window shattered around him, grabbed his hook and rope from his belt and threw it skillfully, laughing gleefully as the hook buried itself in a rock cliff above him and he swung out of Rafe’s line of fire.

The commotion alerted the nearby guards, who looked around in confusion. While a few went to check on Rafe’s status, the others looked around for what caused the window to break. After a few seconds of searching, they saw Nathan running above them on a thin ledge and began firing. Nathan considered it a miracle that he didn’t lose his footing.

“Get Drake!” he heard an enraged Rafe shout from below, causing the guards near him to scatter, looking for a position to fire at Nathan from.

Nathan stopped on the ledge, shrinking back against the wall of the ruins as much as humanly possible. He needed a quick way out or they’d pin him in a heartbeat. Across the way, Nathan saw a tall pillar, slowly eroding with age, but sturdy enough to handle him. With a deep breath, he threw himself towards it, reaching out and barely catching the edge with one hand. Swinging his other hand up as well, he scrambled on top of it. The gunfire slowed for a moment as the guards traced his movements, giving him enough time to glance around. Craning his neck, he saw a rafter above that could hold his grappling hook, but no path to continue on. He was trapped.

Just as he was about to curse his own bad luck, he turned to see a grenade sailing towards his face. With a surprised shout, he ducked, the explosive just barely missing his head as it sailed over him and exploded in mid air. The force of the blast pushed him off the pillar and he caught himself on the edge once more. As he peeked his head over the top of the pillar to check on the damage done, he saw a large hole blown in the side of the wall, big enough for him to swing to.

“Thank god for hardcore ammunition.” he mumbled to himself, grasping his hook once more and throwing it towards the beam above. As it hooked, he wasted no time in dropping from his precarious perch on the side of the pillar, throwing his body weight towards his new entrance.

As he reached the peak of his arch, he felt the rope suddenly snap above him, leaving him in a freefall towards his target location. With a fearful shout, he closed his eyes and positioned himself into a roll as he managed to make it into the newly opened room. His roll, however, failed spectacularly, turning his smooth, painless landing into a brutal, bruising collapse on the stone floor.

“Oh crap…” he huffed, face pressed against the floor as he willed the world to stop spinning.

“Nate!” he heard someone shout, then felt two pairs of hands dragging him out of the way of the gunfire that began only a second later. Once he steadied himself, he looked to see Elena and Sully helping him up, accompanied by two of the kids from the temple.

“What the hell happened?” Elena asked, sounding worried as she looked him over.

“Rafe happened.” he replied, unable to keep the bitterness from his tone.

“Rafe? But he’s dead!” Sully exclaimed.

“Apparently not!” Nate shot back impatiently, looking for a quick and painless exit. “We don’t have time for this… Where’s Sam?”

“He’s on his way up with the third boy.” Elena answered.

Nathan nodded and tapped his earpiece. “Sam, where are you?! We need to get going!”

“Right here!” he heard his brother’s voice from down the hall. As he came into view, Nathan could also see the third child’s form. Just as the boy passed Sam to head into the room, a grenade sailed through the gaping hole in the wall.

“Everybody down!” Nathan shouted, pushing himself and Elena into cover. Elena, in turn, covered the lanky boy and Sully wrestled back the biggest of the three.

“Nico!” Sully’s charge yelled, voice tinged with desperation as he warned the youngest of the danger.

Sam wasted no time in scooping up the shrimpy boy, grabbing him in a bear hug and dragging him back into the hallway, safely behind the thick stone walls. The grenade blew only seconds later, kicking up dust and searing the floor. 

Nathan immediately popped his head out of cover to check on the group. Everyone in the room was unharmed, but the two brothers inside shot up before the dust had even settled.

“Nico?” both brothers asked.

Sam placed Nico down gently, giving him an apologetic look for the wince he caused by picking him up. Nathan’s stomach dropped as soon as he realized what a horrible state Nico was in. Mottled in dried blood and still soaked to the bone, the kid came trotting into the room, eager to reunite with his brothers.

Both brothers’ faces dropped as they saw how their sibling looked. If Nico noticed, he didn’t bring it up, instead reaching into his pockets and bringing out two metal strips with colored bars.

“Diego, you’re green.” he directed, waving the first object. The biggest one, the one that Nathan had heard called Two, stepped forward.

“I’m going to tear them to shreds. Which one of those assholes was it?” Diego hissed softly as Nico tapped the colored strip to the touchpad. As soon as his hands were freed, he tilted his brother’s head gingerly, taking note of each injury in explicit detail.

“Doesn’t matter, I knocked his ass out in the hall.” Nico dodged the question, shaking his older brother off and gesturing for the second, brandishing the pink coded bar. “Klaus, c’mon.”

The lanky doppelganger stepped up to his brother, masking his concern with a sly smile. “Well, that sucked. The guy really knows how to throw a punch, huh?”

Nico snorted, wincing yet again as pain shot through his ribs. “Tell me about it. At least you don’t look black and blue from it all.” The cuffs dropped from Klaus’ wrists with a clang.

“Okay, time to go?” Elena asked hopefully, giving the hallway an apprehensive glance. “We don’t have long before they swarm us.”

“Time to go.” Nathan confirmed, patting Sam’s shoulder firmly as he passed him, taking up the lead of the group.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Now we have both of our big bads out in the open! As much as I felt the end of Uncharted 4 was fitting for Rafe "the Bossman" Adler, I really enjoyed him as an opponent. Having the history between him and the Drakes made it a really interesting dynamic, especially given Rafe's insane desire to destroy them however he could. So, I decided to make a world where he made it out and is now even more bitter than before. Please let me know what you think of my writing of him thus far (as limited as it has been). I am trying to keep him as in character as possible, but pile on the rage after U4, but if he seems off or too tame or something, please tell me so I can tweak him appropriately! If you've made it this far into the story, thanks a bunch!


	10. Troubled Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains an emotional description of suicide from the third person point of view (not gore, just emotional), as well as Klaus' nonchalant, dark sense humor regarding death. I don't consider it too intense, but that's not up for me to decide for anyone else. Here on out, I will not be adding warnings for situations quite similar or identical to this one, but I will add warnings if anything else dark of a different nature appears in a way I consider particularly graphic (in this instance, I am defining graphic as gore and/or emotionally intense). So, I would just be advised and make decisions based on your own comfort level. If dark things don't bother you, feel free to proceed. If they do, make the choice that seems best for you based on your own personal preferences.
> 
> All the Love,  
> SentimentalBoy18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo, heed my warnings. I'm not tryna freak anyone out or scare them off of my story, but I figure it's important I give people a warning since this is the first majorly messed up event in the story. Also, as a general statement, I don't consider mental health issues to be a trivial matter, as I have quite a few swirling around in my own head. I take them seriously(yknow, except for the dark humor one uses to make their day a little brighter), but as this story is entirely fictional (fan-fictional, hahaha), I have decided to take liberties with the situations I have created in order to tell a story that I feel is authentic to the world within a world that I have made for myself and others to enjoy. I don't like to pull punches in a story and I like to leave little pieces of myself in every line, so I hope that care and dedication shows. Ooookay, I am going to stfu now, I've said enough and if I were to go on any longer, I would just look like I was overcompensating and extremely nervous about getting this intense more than I already look like that. Please enjoy the show :)

#### Chapter 10: Troubled Times

Victor Sullivan was never the type of man who wanted anything to do with children. But, when Nathan Drake came along, he felt as though taking him under his wing was only proper. He wasn’t exactly sure the kid would’ve made it out of Marlowe’s clutches without their impromptu partnership. Then, months after their meeting, the revelation that Nathan was only half of the Brother’s Drake caused Sully to take on yet another kid, though this one was far more independent and unwilling than the first. After the second, he had sworn to himself that no amount of tragedy or skill or puppy dog eyes could make him take on any more than he already had.

Until, of course, this teenaged prisoner asked him for a gun.

“Excuse me?” Sully asked as they started down the hall, wanting to be sure that the loud gunfire hadn’t completely destroyed his hearing.

“I need a gun.” Diego stated once more, giving Sully an expectant look. 

Sully warily pulled an extra handgun from his belt and passed it to the boy, the barrel pointed away from the kid. “You know how to use that thing?”

“Yeah.” And with that, Diego skittered off towards the front of the group.

“Trust me, you want him to have a gun.” the one named Klaus assured him. “Way more than you want either of us to have one.”

Sully nodded hesitantly. “I’ll take your word for it, kid.”

After one blessed moment of silence, the gunfire began once more, each member of the group skittering off to cover. Sully cursed under his breath as he checked his gun’s clip. He was just about out of ammo and he figured the rest of the team was in a similar position. These mercenaries were not giving up easily.

“What’s our play, Nate?” Sam yelled over the noise, his own gun clicking in a futile attempt at returning the enemy’s fire.

“If we can get up close enough-”

Nathan’s words were cut off by a series of quick shots, faster than Sully had really thought possible. In under a minute, the hallway fell deafeningly silent, the sounds of battle ceasing. As Sully looked past the pillar he stood behind, he saw Diego standing up and tucking the gun away into the previously empty holster at his hip.

“That was…?” Nathan gaped, standing up and looking around as if he expected some other explanation to appear.

“Yep.” Diego replied, starting forwards again and looking for ammunition near the fallen soldiers.

After exchanging confused looks with Sam and Elena, the group joined the kid in the search for ammunition. The other two brothers followed along, but stuck close to their brother’s side.

“When are you gonna ditch the boots?” Sully overheard Nico asked Klaus. He hid his confused expression from the boys, not wanting to seem too intrusive… yet.

“When we get outta here. The lovely folks in here don’t seem to like me much, so I figure I wait until we’re gone.” he responded, as if the question were entirely normal. Sully’s eyes were drawn down to both of the boys’ feet. Klaus was wearing military issue steel toed boots, but Nico’s feet were completely bare. Whoever Nico had spent time alone with really did a number on him… Didn’t even leave the kid the shirt on his back. What kind of evil motherfucker did that to a kid?

Sully knew the answer. Rafe- fucking- Adler. That rich prick was much better off dead.

The group continued forward, much more prepared for the squads of mercenaries they encountered on the way out. Rafe had this place well secured, they could hardly make it to a new hallway before they were swarmed yet again by ambitious guns for hire that hoped they could impress their new boss by killing the intruders. However, this was far from the first time the Drakes, Sully, and Elena had dealt with drastically uneven odds. Not to mention, this Diego kid was literally a perfect shot. Sully watched him take one shot after another without missing or batting an eye. It was almost disturbing.

The whole time, Diego’s two brothers stayed behind him, as if this were an incredibly common occurrence. Although, Sully couldn’t claim to know whether it was or not. But, one thing he did know after spending a little over an hour with the three was that they had seen far more than most kids their age every would.

Or ever should, for that matter.

After an hour and a half of extremely slow progress, Sully could finally see the star spattered sky through the exit of the ruins, signalling that the end of their mission was near. Thankfully, Rafe seemed to be running out of mercenaries to send their way, allowing the group to make their final push towards the exit. They were so close that Sully could almost taste the night sky, when a yell from the back of the pack drew everyone’s attention.

Nathan, who decided to bring up the rear for the past forty five minutes, collapsed on the steps after a brutal pistol whip from a giant of a man. The man looked incredibly proud of himself and pointed the gun to Nathan’s head, causing every armed member of the crew to lower their guns reluctantly (even Diego, and Sully had to give the kid points for caring enough about complete strangers).

“You’re all coming with me. We’re gonna go ‘ave a talk with the Bossman.” he stated with a victorious grin.

“No thanks.” Klaus replied casually. “But it was very nice of you to offer, Dax.” 

“Yeah, that’s gonna be a no for us, Big-’n’-Ugly.” Nathan mumbled, touching his scalp gingerly, then looking down at his bloodied fingers. Sully winced sympathetically, head wounds always bled like a bitch.

“Well, then, guess we’ll have to say goodbye to our friend Drake here.” Dax reasoned, looking down at his captive.

“No!” Sully’s exclamation was echoed by Sam and Elena, who were all surprised when their cries were not followed by the sound of a single shot to the back of Nathan’s head. Instead, they saw Dax frozen in place, his face a horrified mixture of fear, desperation, and agony. His arm trembled violently, as if he was fighting with himself. Slowly, his arm moved upwards, aiming the gun away from Nathan’s skull.

“You’re going to want to move.” Klaus suggested to Nathan. “You’re in the splash zone.”

Nathan wasted absolutely no time in moving away from the brute, whose gun was now nestled right beneath his chin. The man looked resigned, like whatever force was hijacking his body had fully taken over.

“Look away if you’re squeamish.” Klaus warned. Elena had to shield her eyes, but the rest of them couldn’t stop watching the trainwreck unfolding right in front of them.

The man pulled the trigger, killing himself.

As soon as the body hit the ground, a wretched sob ripped from Nico and he fell to the ground. Tears were streaming from the kid’s cheeks and he clutched his wild hair so hard that Sully figured he was about to tear it out.

“What… the fuck?” Sam asked, looking between the body on the floor and Nico’s collapsed form. “Did he…?”

“That’s not a guy I want to see in the afterlife.” Klaus murmured, more to himself than anyone else, completely ignoring Sam’s question.

“Yes. That was him. He killed Dax. Now someone help me get him up.” Diego stated, looping his arm through one of Nico’s, who immediately started fighting against the contact. Klaus took the other arm, seeming just as unfazed as Diego as the two dragged their distraught brother up the stairs and out of the ruins. Sully started walking as well, taking up the rear as Nathan fell into step with Sully.

“Something is seriously messed up with these kids.” Sully informed Nathan, keeping his eyes forward.

“Yeah, no shit, Sully. But we can’t just leave them. Or turn them back over to the old guy.”

“And why not? The old guy clearly knows them.”

“Something tells me that knowing these kids isn’t the same thing as being good for these kids. Plus, they saved my life… twice now. And Elena’s once. We gotta hear them out, figure out what’s going on.”

It didn’t take long for the group to make it back to the Jeep, hidden in a small cave in a rock face. By that time, Nico had recovered from whatever fit had overcome him and he was walking next to his brothers, wiping his face inconspicuously every few moments. Sully took the driver’s seat, Elena took the passenger’s, and the rest of the group piled in wherever they could fit. Nathan, Sam, and Diego ended up squeezed in the backseat with Klaus and Nico sitting on the back, holding onto the roll cage.

Sully turned on the engine, but left the car in park, instead turning back to face the three newcomers. “Before we move, I need answers.”

“C’mon, Sully, can’t we do this somewhere a little safer…” Elena reasoned, but Sully held up a hand to quiet her down. He usually wouldn’t be so dismissive of her, he valued her opinion greatly. However, he was not negotiating on his terms.

“Ask.” Diego replied, seeming miffed, but not combative.

“What the fuck happened back there?”

“I killed him.” Nico responded, refusing to look anyone in the eyes. “I didn’t want to, but we were running out of options.”

“Explain how you did it.” Sully prompted, his expression neutral, bordering on cold.

“Man, this is a conversation that could be had anywhere else-” Klaus tried, but Sully cut him off.

“It’s going to be had right here, right now. Or you three can take your chances walking to the nearest town.” Sully hated being the bad guy, but if he wasn’t firm, he knew nobody else would be. Sam, Nate, and Elena were a trio of bleeding hearts, no matter how many scars and gruff remarks they attempted to hide behind. They saw three kids in way over their heads. For Sam and Nathan, that struck a particularly raw nerve, taking them back to their own tumultuous childhood. And sure, Sully had his fair share of baggage from childhood. But he was not going to let his personal issues cloud his judgement. When he looked at the three, he saw potential threats.

“I controlled his aura. I turned it from bright orange to dark blue to black, which made him go from excited to depressed to suicidal and pushed him to shoot himself. I’m sorry, I didn’t want to, but he was going to hurt him and I couldn’t let that happen because we didn’t save him in the temple just for him to die later on when we could have done something. Dax wanted me to do that to both of them in the temple, but Diego and I let them go and I just didn’t want to see him die when we did so much…” Nico trailed off, rocking ever so slightly as he rambled, wrapping his arms tighter around himself. Klaus wrapped an arm around him and pulled him in close. Sully noticed the kid had already kicked off his boots, leaving them in the sand at the entrance of the cave.

“Okay…” Sully nodded, trying to process the answer. One thing was clear to him, though. The kid had gone out of his way to save his partner, which was a good thing in his book, despite the graphic scene. Nodding to himself, he then turned to look at Diego. “Where does a kid your age learn to shoot like you do?”

“It’s not learned. I can’t miss.” Diego replied simply.

“And why’s that?” Sully pushed.

“I don’t know, man. My genetics? I didn’t get a say in what powers I got. I just can’t miss.”

Sully took a moment to mull that one over, too. That skill could be useful, if it was on their side. But, so far, Diego seemed to be a trustworthy kid. He had put his ass on the line for all of them in those firefights, covered each and every one of them more than once. And, if what he said was true, he could’ve killed them all at any time. With a second nod, he moved his piercing gaze to Klaus, who was still next to Nico. “And you. What’s with you?”

“Rude.” Klaus sassed back.

“Not an answer.” Sully retorted.

“I see dead people.” Klaus stated casually.

“Real cute, but this ain’t The Sixth Sense.”

“No, really. I see spirits. Everywhere. All the time.”

Sully paused, scanning the kid’s face for any evidence of a lie or joke. There was none. “Okay. Dead people. Tell me about them.”

“Well, in the corner of the cave is a man named Isaac who won’t stop shouting about how absolutely parched he is. Poor guy died of dehydration a couple centuries ago.”

“Anyone else?”

“Well, I’ve got a prick named Benjamin Hargreeves sitting right behind me telling me not to act like such a douche to you all after saving us. I really think he should mind his own goddamn business.”

“Tell Ben he can take your body and get a second chance at life any time.” Diego teased absentmindedly, earning a middle finger from Klaus.

“Hey, Benny.” Nico greeted with a smile, raising his fist to the empty air, as if he was touching knuckles with an invisible person.

“Who’s Benjamin Hargreeves, then?” Sully sighed, already exhausted from the amount of earth-shattering information they were trying to feed him.

“Our brother. He was killed a couple years back.” Diego explained, looking up with a slightly haunted look in his eyes. It was clearly a touchy subject for the three.

“But I still see him.” Klaus added.

“And I can feel his presence.” Nico chimed in.

Sully sat there for a moment, staring blankly at the three extraordinary stories in front of him (four, if you counted this supposed Benjamin Hargreeves). He had a choice to make. He was tasked with deciding whether or not these three children were genuine tortured souls, traumatized by the acts they had seen and performed over their short lives thus far, or sneaky cons working on Rafe’s dime. The decision could make or break his entire family, the one he had fought so hard to put together and keep in one piece. After all, he didn’t spend all those years saving Nathan, Sam, and Elena to lose them because of three kids that gave them all that godforsaken look. The same one that Nathan had in his eyes all those years ago in Cartagena, staring down the barrel of a gun. The same one that Sam gave him when, despite his best efforts and endless sacrifices, he was forced to bring Nathan to Sully’s seedy apartment complex to get a warm meal and a hot shower. The same one that Elena shot him with every time she thought the plan was too risky, that Nathan was going to get himself killed. The look Sully had shot to every passing adult every goddamn day of his first eighteen years of life, praying they would notice the deep purple bruising peeking out from under the collar of his shirt. The look that could only be created by one feeling, helplessness. Complete and utter helplessness. A miserable desire to be brought to safety without a single clue as to what that would look like outside of the daydream created by a tortured child’s mind. The last act of a soul scrambling for a ledge to cling to before tumbling off the cliff into the jagged rocks below. Sully knew that, in this moment, he was the only thing between these kids and that perch. Either he could take their wrists and help them to solid ground or step on their fingers.

Sully turned back around in his seat, looking out the windshield wordlessly as he put the car in drive and maneuvered out of the cave towards the city on the distant horizon.


	11. Phantom Children

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the historical events or legend based things I discuss may not be 100% correct due to the nature of the mysteries surrounding the Knights Templar and their supposed lost treasures. As it stands, I am already taking liberties with history by twisting my story around it. I have done some research, but I am by no means an expert, so just keep that in mind if you spot something that isn't accurate or properly details. Enjoy!

#### Chapter 11: Phantom Children

The ride back towards the city was long and quiet. None of the car’s inhabitants knew what to say to one another. Klaus mumbled softly to thin air, where Nathan could only assume his phantom brother must be. Nico poked at a few of his wounds, earning him a couple of swats from Diego, telling him to leave them be. Elena seemed to be trying to process everything they had just been told and Sully drove in brooding silence. Sam seemed fairly unfazed by the night’s revelations from their new allies, but that didn’t exactly surprise Nathan. His older brother always seemed to be willing to roll with the punches. Not to mention, both Drakes had seen and told one another about a lot of strange things over the years, so surprises were few and far between.

Nathan assumed his previous run-ins with seemingly inexplicable lifeforms and situations was the reason he wasn’t having a harder time processing the information provided to them by their new child charges. After all, he had witnessed the Descendants, a group of mutated colonist zombies, when searching for El Dorado. He had met the Guardians and watched them tear apart one of the most vicious warlords recent history had ever seen. He had hallucinated from a mystery substance within the waters of Iram. Nathan Drake was certainly aware that anything was possible.

He was shaken from his thoughts as Sully pulled up to the motel, a shoddy joint tucked away in the older part of the already small town they had entered hardly ten minutes ago. They had passed several popular cities on their way here, but they wanted a safe hideaway to recuperate before they were found by the occupants of the base they just raided. And, given their newfound knowledge of Rafe’s involvement, Nathan figured they had even less time than they had previously calculated.

“Room 14, everyone inside.” Sully stated, pulling out one of three motel room keys and getting out of the Jeep. The rest of the group followed him, Nathan taking up the rear with Sam.

“You trust them…?” Nathan asked his brother quietly. Despite the years making their difference in age fade, he couldn’t help but defer to Sam’s judgment when he was unsure of his own. Even when he believed Sam was dead, he found himself asking what his elder brother would do when faced with an impossible decision. It had gotten him here in one piece, more or less.

“Yeah.” Sam nodded. “The real little one saved my ass back there. And yours. And the pissy one is a great shot.”

Nathan nodded, falling quiet as the crew entered the motel room. He shut and locked the door behind all of them, making sure to latch the chain as well. Sully, Elena, and Sam all piled on to the faded, threadbare couch while Klaus and Diego sat on one of the two queen sized beds. While Diego sat on the edge of the bed, eyes alert, Klaus collapsed on the tacky flower print comforter, sighing jovially.

Nico, on the other hand, shuffled off towards the bathroom, his body sagging as his injuries began to catch up with him. He turned back up a moment later with a first aid kit, then moved into the pitiful kitchenette to dig through the drawers. After a minute more, he found a travel sized sewing kit and took the two to the round table next to the couch, sitting in the rickety old chair placed next to it.

“Jesus, kid, you’ll butcher the stitches.” Diego griped, standing and going over to the table and popping open both kits. “Take the shirt off, let’s see the damage.”

Nico took off the bloodstained denim shirt and threw it back to Sam, the rightful owner. “I really didn’t want this back.” Sam mentioned casually, pinching the shirt between two fingers to pick it up off his lap, glancing over the various pools of blood that had formed.

“Well, no take backs.” Nico said smugly.

“Awesome…” Sam’s tone dripped with sarcasm.

Now that Nico’s torso was bare, the damage that had been done to him was clear. Gashes of varying depth covered his chest, accented by the occasional small, circular burn. Nathan could hardly look at it as he ran a hand over his face. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sully wince almost imperceptibly and Elena look away all together. She had never been a fan of gore, regardless of her frequent encounters with violent scenes. Even the cheesy old horror movies the couple watched each Halloween caused her to close her eyes, despite Nathan’s passionate rants covering the rampant inaccuracies in Hollywood’s special effects.

“Why the hell did they do that?” Nathan asked, the horror seeping into his tone as he looked between the three kids.

“He knew we had let you two go. The Bossman is pissed at you, Nathan Drake.” Nico said, looking up from his brother’s wound care to look Nathan straight in the eyes. Nathan froze, acutely aware of the group’s lack of proper introductions to one another.

“You know my…?”

“It’s an educated guess. I heard them ask a couple times between hits about Nathan Drake. His name is Sam Drake. Everyone's called you Nathan. Puzzle pieces.” Nico responded, gesturing lazily at Sam. Before another word could be said, Nico hissed sharply in pain as Diego began stitching up a particularly large cut on his right shoulder. “Could you not turn my arm into ground beef?!”

“Then stop moving.” Diego said evenly, continuing his work diligently. It was clear this wasn’t the first time Diego had done such a procedure on a frustrated patient.

“So they…. Over us?” Elena asked, looking Nathan in the eye with an expression full of guilt.

“Don’t worry, they woulda done it anyways, eventually. They get bored easily.” Klaus said, waving his hand gently, rubbing his right shoulder as if he was in pain. “Gentler, Diego. A gentle touch goes a very long way, dear brother.” Klaus whined.

“Wait, hold up-” Sam interrupted, holding his hand up to silence the room. “You,” he pointed to Klaus, “are feeling his stitches?” he moved his arm to gesture to Nico.

“Yes, it’s one of the many side effects of being twins.” Klaus answered with a lopsided smile.

“Twins?” Sully questioned. “He’s a helluva lot younger than you, kid.”

“Well, yes. I was born first.” Klaus reasoned, as though the answer were obvious.

“First by how much?” Nathan inquired.

“Ummm,... Three years?” Klaus replied tentatively, looking to Nico for confirmation. When the younger twin nodded, he reiterated. “Three years.”

“Then how exactly are you twins?” Sully asked, seeming even more confused than before the conversation started.

“Klaus was born like a normal person. Or, as normal as any of the kids like him were born. Then, because he was a stubborn little shit from Day One, Daddy Dearest decided that he wanted to try to make one of us from scratch. Given that Klaus’ powers had the most potential to be manipulated into something else, he took a bunch of baby Klaus’ DNA and fiddled around with it until a viable subject came out of it. That’s me. I was then grown in some weird tube thing. Somehow, I made it out of that high-tech petri dish as a living, breathing human. Thus, twins. We are almost completely genetically identical, beyond our amped up party tricks. That means we look the same, sound the same, and feel the same thing when our bodies are harmed. I assume it has something to do with sharing genetic material.” Nico explained, speaking as though it were completely normal.

“Like this, see?” Diego said, taking the sewing needle and poking it into Nico’s arm.

“Ow!” the twins both shouted in protest.

“You’d have to be a damn good con to fake that…” Sully muttered, more to himself than anyone else. Nathan silently agreed. This extraordinary tale was growing more realistic by the second.

“Okay, so ‘Daddy Dearest’,” Elena began, “Is that a really old dude named Reginald Hargreeves?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Diego replied, his eyes never straying from his handiwork. “How do you know his name?” Nathan couldn’t help but hear the edge in this kid’s tone. Reginald was clearly a sensitive subject, which meant they would all have to tread lightly to maintain the children’s trust.

“After the temple, he was waiting for Elena and I at home.” Nathan explained. “He said he had a ‘business proposition’ to ask of us, so we tried to get information out of him. He called you three his assets and wanted us to retrieve you for him. Then he did the typical ‘do it or I’ll kill everyone you love’ speech.”

Diego snorted in amusement. “His assets. That’s funny. He sold those rights away, what, six years ago?” he asked, looking between his two siblings.

“Yeah… Six sounds about right.” Klaus nodded, putting on the guise of a mystified daydreamer. “Ahhhh, good times.” 

“Sold?” Sam asked, his voice holding the same guarded horror. Nathan really hoped that didn’t mean what it sounded like.

“Yes, Father sold us to the highest bidder when Diego and I were eleven. Nico was only eight, bless the sweet boy.” Klaus mused. Unbeknownst to the boy, the grin tugging at his lips didn’t quite seem to reach his eyes this time, making the statement all the more devastating to his audience.

“Sold, like…?” Elena tried weakly.

“Slavery-esque bidding war, yes. Reggie is a real peach.” Nico drawled sarcastically. “We’ve been passed around several times over the years, so we don’t tend to stay with the same people for long.”

“How long had you been with Rafe?” Sam asked, his voice muffled as he buried his head in his hands.

“Um…. six months? A year? Not long.”

“Oh thank God, we were not working for an active child slaver!” Sam huffed, looking up at Nathan with a sigh of relief. Nathan also let out a breath he hadn’t been meaning to hold. Neither Drake wanted something that awful on their conscience.

“You guys worked for that shitbag?” Diego asked, immediately defensive.

“A lifetime ago. Literally. I thought I had killed him.” Nathan explained carefully. “We were searching for something, first together, then as competitors. I thought I had left him for dead about two years ago, but apparently, he’s still around.”

“So that’s why he hates you both.” Nico crooned, as if the final clue had fit perfectly into the story.

“There was another person there… With Reginald.” Elena added. “He was about your age.” She gestured to Diego and Klaus.

“Was he super tall, buff as hell, and cursed with a permanent resting bitch face?” Nico described, looking fairly interested.

“Yeah, I’d say that covers it.” Nathan agreed, thinking back to confirm the description.

“That, my friends, was Number One. The super strong, super boring one.” Klaus clarified.

“He’s a prick.” Diego grumbled, finishing with his younger brother’s wounds and wiping the weeping closures with a gauze pad.

“All we knew was that we didn’t want to get into it with the big guy. Anyways, we took the deal. We wanted to see what was happening with you three anyways…” Nathan trailed off.

“What were you doing at the temple anyways?” Diego inquired, putting away the unused supplies and tapping Nico’s shoulder, gesturing for him to go lay down on the bed Klaus was inhabiting. As Nico rolled his eyes and trudged over to the bed, Nathan couldn’t help but smile a little. These three reminded him so much of himself and Sam when they were young.

“I have a show called Uncharted. We explore a lot of places, especially historical sites. We didn’t think that temple was significant, but thought our viewers would like it anyway.” Elena answered. “But, since those thugs were there to collect something, I can only assume it’s a lot more important than we previously thought.”

“Ah, yes… The Bossman’s buried treasure.” Klaus mused sarcastically.

“Treasure?” Sam asked, immediately perking up.

“Yeah, if you believe in that sort of thing.” Diego snorted. Nathan couldn’t help but wonder how this superhuman could be a skeptic on something as entirely possible as lost riches.

“You could say we do.” Sully replied casually, lighting up a cigar. Nathan wrinkled his nose at the offensive scent.

“If we’re smoking here, has anyone got a cigarette?” Klaus asked.

“Or two?” Nico tacked on.

Sam rolled his eyes and reached into his pocket, grabbing a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. “You both owe me.” He tossed it over to Klaus, who caught them both eagerly.

“You’re a saint.” Klaus drawled happily, lighting up and passing the items over to his twin.

“Anyways,” Diego prompted, returning them both to the subject at hand, “The Bossman… you said his name was Rafe? He has been on this desperate search for the Holy Grail. Well, technically, he’s looking for the lost treasures of the Knights Templar, but he’s laser focused on the Grail. He is absolutely convinced that the last Grand Master, Jacques de Molai, had managed to maintain a small section of their order and hide this big stash in a secret stronghold or something.” He waved his hand dismissively. “I think he’s crazy.”

“Well, he’s definitely crazy.” Sam reasoned.

“But he might not be wrong.” Nathan defended. “I found a bunch of his research. The numbers on the temple walls were coordinates. I took a picture." 

“Well, that’s awesome. But what’s at the coordinates?” Sam asked, looking to Diego for an answer.

“As far as I can understand, keys. Or at least something that he thinks is a key. He has one, this little cross thing.”

“You mean this?” Nathan asked, fishing a small item from his pocket. It seems as though it was once a pendant depicting a Templar cross. While it was worn with age, clearly from the time of the Templars themselves, it was still in fantastic shape.

“Yeah, exactly that.” Diego confirmed, looking stunned. “How’d you get it?”

“I lifted it while he was trying to intimidate me.” Nathan shrugged, "I figured it looked important."

“That’s my boy!” Sully cheered. Elena laughed quietly, expecting nothing less of her criminally inclined family.

“So, did he find that at one of the coordinates?” Sam questioned, pointing to the cross in his brother’s hand. 

“No, as far as I know, he hasn’t searched any of the coordinates yet.”

“Well, how much do you know?” Sully spoke up, leaning back to observe the stern kid from behind the smoke of his cigar.

“Quite a bit, he was trying to make me his second in command.” Diego answered.

“Personally, I think he had a hard-on for our darling brother.” Klaus piped up, earning himself a death glare from the party in question.

“So, not only are we neck-and-neck with him on this, we also have one key he doesn’t.” Sam pointed out, the adventurous glint in his eye growing brighter by the second.

“Did he say why he wanted the Holy Grail? Was he going to sell it?” Nathan began pacing, wracking his brain for anything he may have learned about the Holy Grail over the years. 

“He’s convinced himself that the Grail controls Jacques’ curse.” Diego. 

“Curse?”

“Yeah, apparently there were allegations of blasphemy made against the order and many of them were arrested and tortured, including Molai. He and some others got burned at the stake and he threatened the wrath of God on those who wronged him. The legend changes between tellings. But Rafe actually believes that this… power is real and can be controlled with the Holy Grail.”

“We call bullshit.” Nico stated.

“This wouldn’t be the first time that curses have turned out to be real.” Elena pointed out, looking up at Nathan from her spot on the couch. “El Dorado was majorly cursed.”

Nathan cringed, nodding. “Don’t remind me. I hated those freaky mutant things.”

“You guys have seen stuff like this before?” Nico leaned forwards, intrigued.

“So far, I’ve discovered El Dorado, Shambala, and the Pillars of Iram.” Nathan said, standing up a little straighter with a cocky smile.

“I found the lost pirate city of Libertalia!” Sam piped up, never wanting to be outdone.

“With me.” Nathan scoffed.

“Hey! I was the only reason you found that place-”

“Boys! Focus!” Elena interrupted, bringing them back to the subject at hand. “The point is that we’ve located a lot of legendary relics before. So there may be a good chance that the Holy Grail is more than a metaphor or whatever. Which makes it equally possible that it could have some sort of power.”

“And the last person who should be wielding power is Rafe Adler.” Sully sighed.

"I hardly trust him with power tools." Sam remarked to Sully, who chuckled softly in reply.

“So we find it first.” Nathan stated firmly. “Like any other lost, dangerous thing we’ve found. We find it first and, if it is as dangerous as he thinks, we destroy it.”

“That hasn’t exactly gone smoothly in the past. Like, ever.” Elena pointed out.

“No, but it’s saved the whole world a lot of trouble. Plus, what’s to say Rafe won’t be after the four of us if it does end up having power?”

“He is a very petty man.” Sam huffed.

“Exactly. If we don’t get involved with this, nobody else will.”

“There could be a nice share of gold in it for us at the end of the line, too.” Sully said. “There’s always a little bit of gold."

Nathan held his breath, searching his wife’s face for some semblance of her thoughts. Her forehead was scrunched up like it always was when she was thinking long and hard about something. He knew that they were supposed to be settled down, for good this time. But, whether they liked it or not, this job sought them out the moment Rafe’s men breached that wall back in the temple. He knew her well, and he was well aware that her relentless nature was not going to let her just walk away from this.

But Nathan didn’t want his own curiosity to be a point of contention in their relationship. Again.

“Then let’s do this.” she determined, patting her knees with a sense of finality.

“You kids in?” Sully asked, looking over their three new charges. The brothers exchanged meaningful looks before responding.

“Yeah, we’re in.” Diego agreed.

“Anything to rain on the Bossman’s parade.” Nico grinned.

“Ben’s in too.” Klaus added, translating for the unseen forth brother.

“Let’s give that asshole hell!” Sam exclaimed with a huge smile.


	12. Calm Before Their Storm

#### Chapter 12: Calm Before Their Storm

It didn’t take long for the exhausted party to break off into the three separate rooms. Sam and Sully stayed in the one they had talked in, while Elena and Nate took the one next door and the kids claimed the final room down the hall. Elena watched to be sure the three teens made it to their room safely before she turned to unlock her door. She was more than ready to take a hot shower before climbing into bed, but she paused when she felt Nathan’s hand on her shoulder. She turned around to check on him, but her confusion quickly turned to worry as she saw the conflicted look on her husband's face.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, reaching towards her waistband for the gun on her hip, eyes quickly searching the quiet motel parking lot below them.

“No- No, it’s nothing… I’m just…” Nathan stammered, clearly trying to find a way to put his thoughts into words. “Can we… Can we talk?” He brought her gently to the railing of the motel’s second floor catwalk. 

“Sure, Nate.” Elena agreed hesitantly, resting her elbow on the railing. “What is it?”

“This… This thing we’ve gotten into… I’m so sorry…” Nathan apologized, giving her the puppy dog eyes that always come along with these conversations. Elena knew the look all too well. It was the expression that made her heart hurt, reminding her of all the times they had broken apart over the years. She supposed she should have expected a conversation like this, given the events of the past couple of hours. Adventuring had torn them apart before and she knew that Nathan took a lot of the blame on himself. But, truth be told, they both had a part in the disputes that caused the rifts in their relationships. In the past, she had expected Nathan to turn into a different person when he was with her, someone who didn’t feel the call of an expedition at every turn. Communication had never been their strong suit, but they certainly were doing better now than ever. Which is why he was apologizing now, Elena figured.

“Nathan, stop.. You don’t have to..” she tried to say, but he waved her off.

“No.. No, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have gone looking for information, I should have focused on the kids.”

“You and I both knew that this wasn’t going to be simple, even if we only got the kids out. We were never going to hand them over to that Hargreeves guy. We have been stuck in the middle of this since the temple. Which I took us to, by the way.” Elena pointed out.

“You’re not mad…?” Nathan asked tentatively, that disdained look flooding with confusion instead.

“Why would I be mad?”

“Well, because we had built such a great life… and your show… and the salvage company. We worked so hard for this life, it was a great balance between normal and… well, this.” he explained, gesturing to their surroundings as he finished his thought.

“We have a great life. And we can always get back to it. But you know that our lives will never truly be simple. And I know that you will always crave this sort of thing.” Elena replied soothingly, placing a hand on his upper arm.

“I-I mean…”

“The reason I know that is because I love this stuff too. That’s why we work. It’s a feeling we only have when we are risking our lives for treasure that we never even get our hands on.” Elena patted his arm softly with an amused smile. “So stop getting all mopey on me. We will work this out together. Nobody is to blame.”

Elena’s smile grew as she noticed Nathan’s shoulders relax substantially. She knew he adored her, more than anything in the world. He would give up each and every adventure to live a peaceful life with her, a sentiment she appreciated immensely. But, for better or for worse, she fell in love with the chaotic, wayward soul that she meant so long ago on the search for Sir Francis Drake’s coffin. He was a kindred soul with her, which was why they endured all these years. Even with all their conflicts and fights and mistakes, they stayed together because they were, at their cores, one in the same. As she went to unlock the door for the second time that night, she grinned to herself, feeling the familiar excitement of a new expedition rising within her.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

“So…. good ole Reginald wants us back, huh?” Klaus asked, dropping down onto the couch the moment the three entered the room.

“Does that surprise you? He’s probably needing us for some stupid mission. Like that one time he rented us to get into the FBI and erase all of his information from their databases.” Nico huffed in frustration, flicking on the lights in the room.

“He’s not getting us, regardless.” Diego hissed determinedly. “If these people even try to hand us over-”

“No, they wouldn’t. They’ve got quite a bit of green in their mix, so they’re good people.” Nico interrupted, gesturing vaguely to the air in front of him. Diego let out a soft sigh. He never thought he’d find his brother's ability to see auras so annoying. While his brother was usually jaded, he had an innocent streak that made him want to trust people based on what he saw about them. He was always so sure of himself, but could never explain why. Diego figured he would never quite get it, that this was just one of Nico's quirks based on his powers, but that didn't make it any less frustrating. Diego was fully aware that people don't always act based on their typical moral standards, but why couldn't his little brother figure that out?

“That may be true, but Hargreeves is threatening them, so we can’t rule the possibility out. I’m just saying, there’s no way in hell we will end up back at the Academy.” Diego reasoned, locking the door and fastening the chain. “We stick with them for now, but if they seem like they’ll turn on us, we bolt.”

Klaus nodded lazily and Nico waved him off, understanding but not wanting to face the idea. Diego rolled his eyes at both of his siblings and headed over to the bed closest to the door. He watched Nico carefully as the youngest walked over to the second bed, wincing with each movement of his torso.

“Jesus, they really hurt you, huh?” Klaus asked, voice laced with concern.

Nico chuckled humorlessly. “You know that, you were there… Kinda.”

“Yeah, but… damn. All over that guy?”

“Bossman is scared of him. And hates him. It’s the only time I’ve seen him panic.” Nico stated, lowering himself carefully into the bed. “He was super desperate for answers.”

“Sounds like we might be on the right side of things, then. Finally.” Diego admitted. “Let’s just hope our luck doesn’t run out.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

“Hey, Sully?” Sam called from the bathroom, splashing water over his face, cleaning off the sand from the windy desert night.

“Yeah, kid?” Sully replied, still in his place on the couch with his cigar.

“Were you really gonna kick those kids out of the car out there? Y’know, before we got back into town?”

“No, probably not.” Sully answered with a heavy sigh. “But I had to vet them before we just ran off with them. Sad as it is to say, kids that young working for a guy as messed up as Rafe could be brainwashed to hell and back.”

“God, don’t remind me.” Sam huffed, shaking his head as he headed back into the main part of their room. “I don’t know how anyone could do that to some kids.”

“What part?”

“Any of it.”

Sully nodded solemnly. “It’s exactly the reason I got mixed up with your brother all those years ago.”

Sam went silent for a moment before letting out an amused snort. “I really fuckin’ hated you back then, man. Thought you were trying to steal my little brother away from me.” he mused, laying down on the bed nearest the bathroom.

“Oh, I know. I don’t think I saw a single smile outta you for six months after we picked you up from that prison in Cartagena prison.” Sully laughed, thinking back fondly to a simpler time. Just him, the boys, and a lust for treasure.

“I know you didn’t. That was by design.” Sam teased.

“I assumed as much. But now look at us.”

“Best of pals.” Sam crooned, an amused grin on his face.

“Don’t push your luck.” Sully warned goodnaturedly.

“Well, I am going to hit the sack. We have got a long day ahead of us.”

“We always do.” Sully mused, standing from the couch and stretching his legs.

. “What about you, Gramps? It’s probably way past your bedtime.” Sam jabbed, pulling back the duvet and sliding into bed.

“Watch it… I’ll turn in in a minute, gonna take a quick walk, make sure we weren’t followed.”

“Knock yourself out.” Sam mumbled, already half asleep. Sully could swear the kid could pass out instantly, regardless of where he was sleeping. Although, anywhere to rest one’s head is better than a prison. Sully knew that fact firsthand.

As Sully carefully slipped out of the motel room, he heard another door close down the hall from his own. He glanced down to see one of the kids, the one with the perfect aim. It took Sully a moment to remember his name before he called out to him.

“Hey, Diego!” he said in a loud whisper, trying not to wake any possible sleeping patrons, including his own group. Diego turned to look at him and nodded his head once in greeting. The kid was just about to go back on his walk when Sully beckoned for him, which Diego reluctantly accepted.

“Where are you going, kid?” Sully asked, leaning on the railing of the motel’s walkway. “Awful late for a casual stroll.”

“I could ask you the same thing.” Diego countered, refusing to let down his belligerent mask.

“Well, I’m just sweeping the area. Gotta make sure Rafe’s men didn’t follow us here.”

“I got it handled.” Diego stated. Sully couldn’t help but feel a small squeeze on his jaded heart. No kid his age should have to go walk patrols to evade their former captors.

“Together, then.” Sully decided, starting down the hall in the direction Diego was previously headed. The kid gave one of those typical teenager sighs and followed along, his head on a swivel.

“Alright, I’m gonna level with you kid. You seem like an intelligent guy.” Sully started, checking each door and window casually for some sign of disturbance. “I know that you probably don’t trust me. Or hell, any of us. But you and your brothers did help out my people back there, which means you’ve earned my respect. All of you.”

“I’m flattered…?” Diego replied, that sarcastic edge still as sharp as ever. Sully rolled his eyes. The last thing he was looking for was another Sam Drake in his life.

“You should be. That said, if you or your brothers even think of working against us or putting them in any more danger than they already put themselves in on their own, you’ll find that there will be hell to pay.” While Victor kept his tone conversational, he couldn’t help but let the protectiveness fueling his words slip through.

“I can respect that.” Diego responded cordially. “On the other side of that coin, if any of them betray us, there will be hell to pay."

“I can respect that.” Sully agreed. The two continued on for a couple more minutes in a relaxed silence, despite the nature of their previous topic. Then, to Sully’s surprise, Diego spoke up first.

“You guys aren’t gonna send us back to Hargreeves, right…?” The words still held that same arrogant tone, but something had shifted behind Diego’s eyes when Sully turned his head to face him. The kid looked… genuinely worried. Sully hadn’t known the kid long, but he had seen Diego walk through a firefight with a calm demeanor. The kid almost seemed unshakeable, even his care towards his brothers was stony. But now, asking Sully this simple question, he looked far younger than his age.

“No, boyo. Nobody is sending you three back to Hargreeves.” Sully felt his heart lift just a little when he saw the fear leave the kid’s eyes. It was clear he was still apprehensive, unsure if he could trust those words. But it was most definitely a start.

“Okay, good.” Diego nodded, looking forward once more as the two completed their patrol in peaceful quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kinda felt like everyone needed a chance to clear the air before we got back to the action, so here's all of that. I hope it didn't bore anyone too much. My biggest goal in all of this was to get Nathan and Elena to talk more about the issue of adventure vs normal life. I feel like in Uncharted 4, the biggest part of the misunderstanding between Elena and Nathan was more the issue of the lie, not the issue of the job itself. I kinda felt like Nathan kept bringing it back to the idea of going on the adventure, but I honest think that it wouldn't have been so hard for Elena to make her peace with the adventure. It was the lie that upset her (for super obvious reasons). I think that she loves the adventure just as much as Nathan does, but the ding dong had to lie to her, which created the whole problem. Therefore, I wanted to clear that issue up between them on my own here because, good god, Nathan, don't be a dummy. Thanks again for reading, I'm really glad that I've passed 150 hits. :)


	13. Promise Me This

####  Chapter 13: Promise Me This 

Nathan Drake had never seen a teenager as intense as Diego as he hunched over a map of the map of the Middle East spread over the table of Sam and Sully’s motel room. He squinted at Nathan’s phone screen, which displayed the picture of the map he found in Rafe’s base. The young man looked almost angry at in inanimate objects, as if they had offended him in some way. After a little while and a couple of marks on the map, Diego nodded and looked up.

“Okay, I’ve got it figured. But we have a problem.” Diego stated.

“Don’t we always?” Sam sighed, the sarcasm practically dripping from his words.

“What’s the problem?” Nathan questioned, gesturing vaguely towards Sam to silence him.

“We only have three coordinates here. The fourth is missing.”

“Didn’t you say there were only three keys?” Sully inquired, leaning forwards and exhaling smoke.

“Yeah, there’s only three keys, but they have to be taken somewhere completely different to unlock whatever it is they’re looking for.” Diego explained. “But he’s kept that one off this map. Probably as a security measure.”

“Okay, so we have to figure out the fourth location once we get the three keys?” Elena asked, attempting to confirm the group’s unfortunate position.

“Ding ding ding!” Klaus exclaimed cheerily. “Give the lady a gold star.”

“Then we’ll just have to get it from Rafe ourselves.” Nathan shrugged.

“Um… Excuse me? Do you remember the last person who got on Rafe’s bad side during a treasure hunt?” Sam interjected, raising his hand high.

“You?” Nathan replied dryly.

“Yes, me! I ended up getting shot and having to push you off a cliff.”

“Yes, thank you, Samuel. Despite the hit to my head, I remember it clearly.” Nathan drawled frustratedly.

“Do you? Because I’m pretty damn sure that is reason enough to try and avoid Rafe through all of this.”

“You’re not going to be able to avoid him.” Nico piped up. “Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but he really fucking hates you four. If any of you show your faces at those locations, he will be on your asses. Now, we can mitigate the damage as much as possible, but we gotta be ready for a fight. Whether we like it or not, he will be on our asses.”

“Ben says that our best chances will probably be if we split up. Three locations, seven people, three groups of two.” Klaus piped up, raising his hand as if he were in a second grade class.

“Ben will be most useful with Klaus. If there is a location we suspect Rafe will be at, we should send those two there.” Diego mentioned.

“Now, I’m not one to speak ill of the dead, but how is the ghost going to help us?” Sully questioned, a suspicious scowl painted across his face.

“The ghost has powers.” Diego replied, as though the fact were obvious.

“But he’s still a ghost.” Sam reminded the group.

“Klaus, help them meet Ben.” Diego instructed, gesturing for his brother to take a step forward.

Klaus tittered happily as he leapt to his feet, his actions as dramatic as ever. He clapped his hands and threw them out in front of him, closing his eyes. After a moment, the room began to shimmer with a mystical blue light as the teenager’s face strained. Klaus began to float above the ground, crossing his legs as he sat backwards on absolutely nothing. Before Sam or Sully could toss out another quip, the ghostly figure of a boy around Klaus’ age appeared next to the kitchen table, waving at the doubtful duo with a cheerful smile.

“Benjamin Hargreeves, nice to meet you.” he stated, his voice surprisingly human for a phantom figure.

“Hey, bro.” Diego said, an actual smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Holy shit…” Sam murmured, looking at the newcomer with an astounded expression.

“Um… Good to meet you too?” Nathan attempted, waving after a pointed nudge from Elena signalled him to be polite. “Are you.. Dead?”

“Yes, very.” Ben answered casually. “But Klaus speaks to the dead and, sometimes, he can channel them.”

“That’s… amazing.” Elena commented, her curiosity almost getting the better of her. She had so many questions for these four remarkable kids, but she knew those had to wait.

“Do you have powers too?” Sully inquired, his old face full of youthful wonder.

“Yes. Giant tentacles come out of my chest.”

“Really?” Nathan questioned with a grimace.

“Yes, really.” Ben confirmed.

“It’s scary, but in a badass way.” Nico chipped in.

“Can I let him go now? There’s this dead German guy yelling at me.” Klaus asked casually. “He keeps saying something about us finding his killer and I don’t really want to get roped into another situation.”

“You’re good, Klaus.” Diego nodded. Klaus released his hold on his brother’s spirit and returned both of his feet to the ground, letting out a deep sigh from the effort.

“You kids are fucked up.” Sully deadpanned.

“Yeah, we know.” Klaus agreed, smiling as if he was congratulated on a rare achievement.

“Rafe was personally going to check out the coordinates in Egypt first. Klaus needs to head there, Rafe will completely underestimate him. Who’s going with him?” Diego prompted, immediately returning to the business at hand.

“We can go.” Nathan responded, pointing to himself and Elena. “Extra backup will be helpful, Rafe’s bound to have extra thugs following him around. If we get close enough, we can figure out where the final location is…. Somehow.”

“I’ll take Nico with me.” Sam offered, gesturing lazily towards the youngest of the three brothers.

“That leaves you and me, boyo.” Sully finished, nodding to Diego.

“Alright. We split up, find the keys, and flee our respective locations. Then we have to lay low until we hear from one another and have the fourth location.” Diego determined. “If we keep ourselves separated, he won’t get everything from us at once if we get captured.” The group nodded in agreement, the air heavy with a newfound understanding of the stakes. They were the only people standing between Rafe and ultimate power or wealth…. Or both. This wasn’t a typical treasure hunt, or even a daring mission to stop their rival thieves with less than noble intentions. This was a huge mission with drastic consequences should something go wrong. They all acknowledged the tension in the room with silent glances. Words were useless in a moment such as this.

The group quietly dispersed to their own rooms to pack and prepare for the journey ahead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I took so long to update, I've hit a case of writer's block hardcore and I am trying to work through it. Also, just as a random note, I am definitely combining comic book and television show abilities because it's hella fun.


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